


The Tower of Vanity

by XIII4



Series: Burn My Dread [1]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug, Persona 3, Persona 4, Persona 5
Genre: Alternate Universe - Persona Fusion, Audrey is a Bitch, Blood and Injury, Character Study, Chloé Bourgeois Redemption, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Good Chloé Bourgeois, Graphic Description, Guns, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Mental Instability, Persona User Chloé, Post-Episode: s03 Miracle Queen (The Battle of the Miraculous Part 2), Protective Margaret, Shadows (Persona Series), Suicide Attempt, The Velvet Room (Persona Series), only toward Chloé, she will adopt Chloé
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-17
Updated: 2020-08-06
Packaged: 2021-03-03 22:15:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 23,077
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24772990
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/XIII4/pseuds/XIII4
Summary: Chloé lost everything in a single action, a single choice destroyed her social life and buried her already bad reputation through hell. She thought about ending it all, but something happened that will change her life forever. A chance to meet her true self, to abandon all mask and be who she was beneath all those mask. To burn the dread dragging her down.With the help of a white-haired woman in velvet clothes, she will seek the truth behind everything. All the dark secrets of her acquaintances, and she will expose their distorted desires to the world. No matter what.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir & Chloé Bourgeois, Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir & Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Chloé Bourgeois & Igor, Chloé Bourgeois & Lila Rossi, Chloé Bourgeois & Luka Couffaine, Chloé Bourgeois & Margaret, Chloé Bourgeois & Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Chloé Bourgeois & Sabrina Raincomprix, Gabriel Agreste | Papillon | Hawk Moth & Nathalie Sancoeur, Margaret & Igor
Series: Burn My Dread [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1791667
Comments: 29
Kudos: 101





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

  * For [SorryJustAnotherPerson](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SorryJustAnotherPerson/gifts).



“You want me to _what_?” The normally composed assistant of the Velvet Room, Margaret, found herself asking in shock as she dropped her Grimoire in the process.

She thought that she heard wrong, her mind was absent as she thought about all her siblings and how each one of them went out of their way to have a life – more or less – outside of the Velvet Room, something very dangerous since humans shouldn’t be in so much contact with beings out of their comprehension.

But no, the Caretaker of the Velvet Room, Igor, repeated his words once more. “I want you to go outside of the Velvet Room and see for yourself what made your sisters so fascinated about the human world.” The long-nosed man said, rubbing his hands together.

Margaret, however, wasn’t so keen in the request. “Why should I do that, Master? Someone needs to be with you in case something happens again, we can’t afford a second impostor-incident to happen.” Bargaining is the best thing she has right now, because even though she didn’t want to go outside, her Master asked her to.

Igor simply grinned, but his face showed gratitude for her concern. “Don’t worry about it, my Master has made some changes to the Velvet Room and now, only people with the blood of a resident or my permission can enter the Velvet Room without a contract.”

The platinum-blonde woman kneeled to grab her book before looking at her Master again, raising an eyebrow while thinking about his words. If the Master of her Master, Philemon, already changed things on the Velvet Room and gave it more security to avoid another impostor situation then it was safe enough for her to leave her Master alone, if even by a few days.

Even still, she was never comfortable going outside of the Velvet Room. She’d lived every single day of her life inside of it, and only knew about the outside from what her siblings told her about. She’d used the grimoire to see what changes were happening outside, to know about how people behaved, to know their own morale and such, although she had a very poor impression of humans.

They were emotional creatures, far too emotional for what she gave them credit for. Emotion overwhelms reason any day in their books, and those who are rational don’t live long lives due to how everyone else perceives them and although she would never admit it, it hurt when her siblings went out of their duties to be with the human they took a liking to.

_“I need to find a way to bring him back.”_ Elizabeth had said before she went on her own journey to bring back The Messiah.

_“I want to know about them, and have fun with them.”_ Marie said before going with the Truth-seeker and his group.

_“We decided to be with The Trickster, Master gave us permission to do so. We hope that one day, you can find someone that makes feel how the rest of us did.”_ Lavenza said, with her speech pattern of refer themselves as we after being separated and reunited. She went to be with the Trickster.

She understood that changes can be positive and negative, but most changes around her only made her lonely instead of something positive. She’d been absent-minded for the last couple of weeks after Lavenza left, trying to see the damages that Yaldabaoth has caused with his little game in the human world.

Margaret is pretty sure that her Master was worried about her, after all, even though the Assistants of the Velvet Room didn’t need to sleep being focused on a single thing for so long wasn’t the best thing, not even for them.

But… she didn’t anything more to do. She’d focused all of her life toward the Velvet Room that being outside of it, felt… surreal? Felt different, and she is pretty done with differences for a century.

“Even so…” Margaret didn’t know what to reply. When nothing came to mind, she simply sighed before putting a hand on her hip. “I think… I can go outside for a few days, sight see something and the like.”

“Good.” Igor said, looking pleased at her acceptance. “I think this experience would be very good for you.”

Igor clapped his hands and a door appeared out of thin air, vines traveling up the sides as it opened, unveiling a velvet mist.

The Velvet Door.

She had an uneasy feeling, a chill traveled down her spine as she felt something… _lurking…_ in the other side of the door. It seems that Igor didn’t feel it, his face was still waiting for her to walked through the door. She braced herself up for whatever she may encounter from this point onward, grimoire in hand and she walked through the door.

The chill from before grew a little up and she felt her feet touching something solid. Her eyes opened, golden eyes staring at the floor before looking up to see the moon, it had an alluring aura to it. The Messiah was watching; he is always watching over them.

Sighing, Margaret began to look around, to know where in the world Igor send her to do some sight-seeing. She was besides a giant building, something akin to a hotel that Marie told her from when she returned to visit her. It looked fancy, sure, but there was something in there, something brewing and she felt that it was dangerous. She would’ve have to see what it was.

While looking around, she found a familiar structure.

The Eiffel Tower.

She was in France, in the Parisian City of Love.

Then… _Why is the city reeking such negativity?_ Margaret wondered, a finger on her chin while going into thinking mode.

A city such as this shouldn’t have this negativity to begin with, although human cities does have it as their shadows normally would have the negativity, this city has such as strong feeling that she feels almost as if gravity grew if even a little.

Suddenly, there was a shift in the atmosphere. Something filled up with negativity was moving, something that reeked a powerful shadow. It was something that raised her guard, since shadows couldn’t exist outside of the metaverse, and it was destroyed when Yaldabaoth disappeared and after the Trickster made everything go back to normal after his sensei almost became a ruler of the world.

The feeling went to a floor of the upper level, the one with the balcony.

“ _Persona…_ ” Margaret breathed out, her grimoire opening and a card appeared. She grabbed the card and smash it against the ground. “ _Come, Helel_.” She whispered.

A being appeared from the card. A faint beam of light came forth as the being appeared. It had six angelic wings and six demoniac wings, blonde hair and his face looked gentle, if only because this is its angelic appearance. Helel bowed after looking who summoned him.

“Hello, what do you require for me to do?” he asked.

“I need to lift me up in the air, I need to take a look at something.” Margaret said, before Helel nodded. He went behind her and grabbed her by the side, carefully as he did not want to be buried six feet under again. As she was being lifted, she noticed a butterfly going inside of the room where the balcony is, and she also notice that the negativity came from the butterfly itself.

_I’ll have to investigate this…_ Also, she was glad that she would have something to do these days. _Let’s see—_

She saw the butterfly going inside of an earring of a blonde girl. A visor appeared, shape-like butterfly glowing in the darkness surrounding the girl. It seems that a conversation was happening, but Margaret noticed something a familiar shaped thing was on the girl’s hand.

A gun.

She had a _gun_ on her hand.

“Oh, dear.” She heard Helel muttering. “I feel the faint feeling of the First Hell-Ruler coming from her and another one, that I can’t recognize.”

_First Hell-Ruler… Satan? She has the Judgement_? Margaret thought, surprised and a little shocked. Then, the girl pointed the gun at her temple. The assistant knew for a fact that the gun wasn’t an Evoker, it was a real one. That girl planted to kill herself, and the butterfly seemed to be the cause of it.

In a split second, Margaret grabbed a card from the Grimoire and put it between her fingers and threw it toward the girl. The card was right between the temple and the gun when it was fired, the sound was drowned by a massive sound of glass shattering.

“Take me closer!” Margaret commanded and the Persona did it. She was brought to the balcony where she jumped from Helel’s hands and kneeled beside the girl. Blonde hair tainted in blood, part of the card beside her. Her clothes gave it away that she was someone with money, but right now Margaret didn’t care about her.

She even remembered something Elizabeth once said to her.

_“Some humans have everything against them, or they feel like it is that way. The feeling can get to them so much that it can made them do irrational things, or so I’ve been told by Minato. Something of those actions, are basically ending one’s life. The negative feeling gets to them, and there is no one that could get them back to light. To appreciate their lives.”_

“Helel, Samarecarm!”

Light indulged the girl as the bullet wound began to close, slowly. The bullet fell out of her head, and Margaret will ask her questions were the girl wakes up. The more information the better, because she knows that something isn’t right. Something feels off about the city. Then, the clock on the room hits midnight and it stops completely.

Margaret paled before looking back at the moon. It was blueish-green.

_Apathy Syndrome?!_

She knew that something was wrong, but not that it was this bad.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I had this idea in mind, and so my hands began writing it. I dont know how much well reception this will have, but if its good then I'll continue this story. I have an idea of everything that will happen, but I dont want to write that people will not enjoy.
> 
> So comment your thoughts about it and if you want more, just tell me.


	2. Break Thy Mask

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chloé doesn’t remember much of what happened, she knew she shot herself on the head, right in the temple but nothing else. 
> 
> Her mind began to hurt and when a being she’d never meet attacked her, and she unleashes a power she’d never heard about, she knew things will get weird.

Her consciousness came back and the first thing that she thought was, _how am I alive?_

The second thing, was when her eyes fluttered awake. She had a splitting headache and her temple burned hot but when her vision started to go back and the pain became somewhat bearable she found herself staring at an unfamiliar ceiling. It was black and charring, the sight made her confused and uncomfortable as well as the smell that was brewing was horrible.

Chloé’s face contorted into disgust as her brain finally caught up with the smell completely, but the pain in her head was making her thoughts a little mixed up. Some of them weren’t even complete thoughts. Why and where were the prominent ones since everything else would be lost before she could understand them.

 _Get up…_ A whisper went through her mind, a jolt of pain through the back of her neck and her temple suddenly began to ache. She got up while groaning in pain before looking around.

The room she was in could not possibly be her room. It was a storage, wooden crates – some with cracks, and she is pretty sure that there is some jewelry on them, there was a golden glint – and something akin to swords. It looked like something straight out of a fantasy book, like a storage room of a castle. There was, also, a fissure on the ceiling and a red-blackish liquid was falling.

Chloé lifted a finger and some of the liquid fell on her finger. She smelled, but she paled quickly when she recognized the smell. It smells like metal and copper, but there was no liquid this color that could smell like this except one thing.

_Blood._

_What!?_ Her mind thought, and she understood that she could finally hear her own thoughts. A relief came to her mind, but was suppressed since she could finally think _straight_. Her thoughts were finally racing, and it didn’t help. She was sure that she was in her room, right before the Akuma flew to her and she decided to blow her head off to at least make Hawkmoth take unbearable pain of feeling death.

But apparently, something went wrong.

Since she was alive.

“ _Where_ am I?” She whispered to herself, obviously not knowing the answer.

Walking toward the balcony, she noticed how the sky was awfully bright. Like, it wasn’t that dark, more like blue-hue that still made the stars noticeable and she turned to see the moon, to where it was to know more or less the passage of time.

It was almost Midnight when she ‘killed’ herself, maybe it was a dream and this is a dream in a dream.

The sight of the moon made her stop. It was of a different color, blueish-green.

“Why—?”

 _Get out!!_ The whisper on her mind grew louder and it hurt so much that she fell to her knees and some tears were beginning to gather on her eyes. She whipped her head around to see the door, reeking some dark mist from it. Her mind shouted to go through the door but her body refused to move.

She had to admit something, everything felt so real that she is beginning to feel _scared_.

Walking up to the door, she felt the presence of the mist all the most unbearable. She thought she had grown from being scared of surprised, with Akumas running around and everyone hating her, she knew that she had to be though to survive from Miracle Queen on.

The door was opened, and an ominous feeling creeped over her. Something on her mind nagged her to continue, something inside of her told her that this was just a night terror, that there was nothing to worry about. But another part of her told her to take this very seriously.

Right when she felt the room, there was a clock right in front of her. It looked like a grandfather clock and it marked 12:00, but the time wasn’t moving. Chloé went closer to the clock and touched it, it felt… weird. She backed off before another whisper appeared on her mind.

 _See… the… truth. Look… last room._ It was what the whisper said.

“Last room…?” Chloé wondered, she looked to the left and noticed that her vision became bleak, a color pattern of greys. The last door to the left glows in a faint red color before she shakes her head to notice that everything was back to normal.

Her heart was pounding and the headache grew again.

The feeling of her wanting to go to that room grew, but she knew that something was wrong from the moment she woke up.

Everything was weird.

Everything had to be a dream, or a nightmare. Night terror? Maybe, that thought already occurred but everything she tried to convince herself that everything was false, her own mind would say otherwise.

Resigning herself to the feeling, she walked toward the door. Standing right in front of it, Chloé opened the door and she froze at the sight.

There was someone, a person on the ground. Blood was leaking form certain places, mainly the torso and the back. The face showed that malnutrition was into the play, and their hands looked sore as well as their feet. Overwork too.

Chloé closed the door quickly and didn’t dare to look again. Vile rose from her throat but she swallowed it down, the bitter taste now on her mouth.

“What was that?”

A question that wouldn’t be answered quickly, as a chill grew on her spine. Sound of footsteps reached her ears, and she noticed something walking far down the hallway. Armor of a knight, deformed on the lower part, deep red-eyes that she could barely see through the helmet.

“An intruder!” The armor yelled and that spiked Chloé’s heartbeat.

The knight unsheathed the sword at his side and Chloé knew she had to get out of there. she went to grab the doorknob of the door, ignoring the feelings she had before to survive when she felt something passing right beside the back of her neck, she touched her neck quickly and noticed a trail of blood on her hand.

Her panic rose as she saw the figure running faster, this time without a sword. It threw the sword to her, and it almost killed her.

Her nerves made her fail to open the door properly, but she managed to do it before she went quickly inside of the room. She noticed the person, but ignored it as she tried to look for a place to escape. Then, something came to her mind.

_I… didn’t close the door, did I?_

A nervous smile appeared on her face as she turned around to see the armor, standing there, sword in hand, staring at her.

She could barely see what was happening, but she felt an excruciating pain coming from her torso. Chloé blinked, looked down to see the sword going through her before it was retracted back into the sheath. Blood began sprouting from her mouth, copper covering her whole taste buds. _At least is not bitter anymore…_ she thought, as suddenly she felt a hand on her throat, grip hard and tight that it seemed that was being crushed from the pressure.

Chloé was lifted from the air, her flailing her legs as she tried to get free from the grip to no avail. Her vision also began to blacken.

“Why?” She rasped out, more blood leaking from her mouth.

“Queen Bourgeois doesn’t need you anymore. You’ve become a thorn on her side, and she demanded your execution right away. As unexceptional as possible.” The Knight said as if proud of his words.

 _Queen Bourgeois? Who—?_ Her thoughts were interrupted by a sudden voice.

**“Are you just going to let him kill you?”**

It was loud and it demanded with its voice. A shudder went through her body as she noticed that everything was paralyzed—no, everything simply stopped moving. She couldn’t hear the wails of the person on the ground, not could her see the knight making any moves.

**“Eh!? Answer! Are you going to let him decide your fate!?”**

It asked again.

“No…”

**“What did you say?”**

“No! I want to live!”

**“Perfect! That’s what I wanted to hear!”**

The gleefully sound coming from the voice made her confuse, but a quick and bright light appeared on the room and from a velvet light, it appeared. Chloé found herself staring at herself, someone who looked just like her, except that golden eyes were staring right at her.

**“This is our life, accept that your mother doesn’t love you and never did. Break yourself from the opinions of the people. After all, a ruler doesn’t care what their people think, it cares about them, not their thoughts. Accept your fate on your own hands, and break the chains that bind you!”**

Not-her came closer and handed her something, a gun, that looked different from any kind of gun she had seen before.

**“A gift from _him_. Don’t waste it, show everyone your true self. Bring me forth! I am thou—”**

“—and Thou Art I.” Chloé whispered.

Everything came back to normal and the knight began moving once more. It noticed the gun in Chloé’s hand and tried to pry it away, but a sudden burst of wind came into the room, throwing him away toward the wall.

A sudden splitting headache came and she felt to her knees, the gun on her hand as she tried to stand up. She grabbed her temple with her left hand as a mask appeared in velvet flames on her face, it sparked even more pain and she wanted it to stop, the pain needed to stop. If having a mask was going to hurt so much, she preferred to live without it.

She pointed the gun at herself. “ _Per… sona!”_ she muttered, before pulling the trigger and a glass shattering noise happened.

**From thy heart I come.**

A burst of flames erupted from the right side of her face, hot feelings coming forth as she felt how the mask broke into two, the right part was the one who set the fire free. Set _her_ free.

**I, who was born in Wonderland, shall come back.**

A figure appeared from the flames, a feminine figure. Big but elegant posture, outlines in red as its silhouette invaded her whole vision. Suddenly, it began to gain some color, the skin began to appear on the face and hands as some sprouted from the head.

**My reign, of Madness, will arise.**

It looked like a crown, but it was something alike. It clawed the upper part of the head, covering the eyes. It had a heart-shaped rock atop it. A smile began to form in the entities smile. A cruel smile. A dress appeared, blood leaking from every tip of the dress.

**Judge them all, kill them all.**

An ax made herself appeared out of the arm of the being. A one-sided ax that looked incredible sharp, the handle gave away that the ax was a battle ax, the colors were interesting. Golden, velvet, black and red. Al in a single heart keychain, the less near the center, the more twisted it looks and the center had the golden heart.

 **Those who oppose, justice, shall die**.

Vines rose and wrapped themselves around the belly of the ax, something also went toward the hand grabbing the ax, and wrapped itself into the ax, thorns penetrating the skin, leaking a black and red liquid. The female figure came more visible to her, although she could only see with her left eye for now as the right one was bleak and blurry, foggy even.

**For I am, the Queen, who knows their hearts.**

The knight finally recovered himself and stood up to see the being. His face showed nothing, but his body language showed that he was surprised. Even Chloé was, but a feeling inside of her made her feel nothing for the knight. Only the desire to judge, to kill.

**I am Victoria of Madness and Wonderlands.**

The being introduced itself. The voice echoing throughout the room as Chloé stood straight before looking at the knight with a glare of murder.

**What is the saying?**

“Off with their heads!” Chloé shouted as the knight moved to dodge the swinging ax coming his way. It was futile, as the ax was swung horizontally and the head of the knight was separated from the body. A stream of blood – its blood – shot upwards as most of it fell on her body.

She notices her clothes have changed, mostly, but she didn’t care in the moment. She had to get out of this mad place. This wasn’t just a night terror anymore. This was weirder than any Akuma she’d seen.

Chloé quickly left the room in a haste, before looking back at the person on the floor. Swallowing her saliva, she walked out of the room to notice more of them in a place where it looked to be a hall. One of them almost killed her, she could still fell her throbbing neck because of it, the wound hasn’t closed and she doubts that it won’t leave some kind of scar behind.

**Kill them all.**

She heard in her the being speaking to her. She whirled around to see Victoria looking at her, expectantly.

**Trust me, they’ll try to kill you, kill them before they can.**

Victoria’s mouth moved but no sounds came from it, as if the words were being spoken in her mind but not outside. Chloé nodded, trusting this being that has decided to help her, as she felt that the being was more trustworthy than herself in this matter.

Victoria disappeared into blue flames as it went to her face, fixing her broken mask, her grip on the gun tightened, she figured that she would have to do the same to summon the being to help her. The blonde walked straight into the hall, and analyzed the place. It looked like dining hall, there were some plates and food, that didn’t look edible.

Swords were being used as decoration as the place looked awfully like the place for someone like a knight to be in.

“Intruder!” She heard a knight voicing out and her alert went up.

Chloé watched as how the other knight whirled around and spotted her, quickly grabbing their swords and going toward her. She quickly pointed the gun at herself and invoked Victoria, feeling the order on Chloé’s mind without being spoken, moved forward to attack. Swinging the ax, she managed to repel some of the knights but one got through and swung his own sword, Chloé dodges and the sword passed barely scratching her cheek, as a little trail of blood began to leak from the wound.

It didn’t hurt so much, only because her urge to kill them all increased exponentially.

 _Victoria! Off with his head!_ Chloé commanded on her mind, as Victoria quickly turned around and shot toward the knight in front of Chloé, swinging the axe and cutting his head off before the axe began to be coated in a dark matter.

Chloé felt the dark matter without even touching it, without realizing it. The rage and anger leaving it, demanding judgment toward those who oppose her. To kill them all. it felt good, she could finally free all of her pent up emotions. Chloé unknowingly smiled, she didn’t care anymore, _killing these knights felt good!_

“ _Execution_!” Shouted Chloé while pointing at the incoming knights.

Victoria grinned at swung her axe, expelling the black matter from it.

An energy slashed appeared and went straight toward the knights, beheading them and successfully killing them without problem.

Chloé quickly grinned again, but frowned as she noticed how energy began to leave her body. Exhaustion was appearing and she didn’t know why, but she had to continue, until she was safe she would not waver, she would not yield. She will kill every single last one of them, for they had done to her. Blinking, Chloé noticed that the last train of thought wasn’t hers, but rather Victoria’s, she could feel it. They were the same, abandon by the one they trusted.

**The deed is done.**

She heard Victoria’s voice and looked around. The once semi-clean hall was covered in the blood of the knights, everything was drenched at some level of their blood. Chloé walked toward the nearest knight armor-corpse and grabbed its sword. Golden one-sided blade with a red-handle covered in its blood—

Chloé heard footsteps approaching.

“I see you have done something… interesting.” A voice spoke, feminine and elegant.

It echoed in the room as Chloé quickly looked back to the hallway where she had first woken up. Then, her vision began to blurry. Her sight began to go dark slowly but Chloé tried to get a grip, to stay awake. She couldn’t fall asleep just yet, she still had so much more killing to do. Though, another part of her just wanted to be done, she had played long enough, sleep was necessary and she wasn’t going to get much after this.

**The deed is done.**

She heard Victoria’s voice and looked around. The once semi-clean hall was covered in the blood of the knights, everything was drenched at some level of their blood. Chloé walked toward the nearest knight armor-corpse and grabbed its sword. Golden one-sided blade with a red-handle covered in its blood—

Chloé heard footsteps approaching from where she first woke up.

“It seems that you have done very well for your first time in here. Good job, I have to say.” A feminine voice spoke with maturity and elegancy.

Chloé suddenly felt very, very tired. Her eyes began to fail as the darkness slowly began to appear. She couldn’t fall asleep just yet, she still had so many knights to kill, so many betrayers to kill and make them beg for mercy, to simply kill them alter without a single drop of remorse. Yet, another part of her was done playing and wanted to sleep, to have more energy to play another day.

**Trust her.**

The blonde fell to her knees as she watched the approaching figure. A woman, with platinum-golden hair and golden eyes walked up to her. Her velvet clothes were the most prominent part of her, as her pale skin blended fairly well with her hair. Golden accessories everywhere in her clothes and high-black boots.

Victoria disappeared in blue flames as Chloé’s mask was complete once more. The woman came closer and kneeled, touching Chloé’s face with a gentle touch.

“ _Dia._ ” The woman whispered, as the book the woman was carrying lit up and Chloé felt a little bit better, but the tiredness was still there. “Sleep, we have much to do tomorrow. I’ll explain everything to you then.”

Chloé nodded before her vision went dark.

She felt, like everything was going to be very messy from then on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and thoughts are appreciated.
> 
> 0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
> 
> Victoria of Madness and Wonderlands: The Queen of Hearts, betrayed by her knights in favor of a girl that they barely know, who they said was much better than her. Execute by cutting her head off, she came back from the death to murder all the knights that betrayed her but left the girl alive.


	3. Beneath Thy Mask pt.1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chloé wakes up at the notion that what she experienced was real, trying to wrap her head around she passess the day and somewhere on the city, Gabriel wonders about Chloé's sudden revival.

“Jean, why are you looking at me like that? Stop it.”

“Mademoiselle Chloé, if I may say so, you don’t look in the best of conditions.”

Lack of sleep does that to the human body, she’d known. The energy which she usually wakes up was gone, and she felt sore on most parts of her body but more prominently on the back of the neck. She wasn’t able to move for another ten minutes after waking up, and she had woken up when the sun was barely visible in the distance, when it was rising to shine upon the world.

Which made some sense, She’d woken up exhausted and tired, as though she had only slept for about two hours max.

Chloé rested a hand on her neck, right above where the cut where the knight had done was. She could feel the scar, she could sense and it made her realize some things because of it.

One, people will notice about it if she didn’t cover it with something. That was something she didn’t want, after all, she’d to keep a low profile these days.

She remembered panicking when she felt the scar, but a bubbling feeling of warmth and peace filling her up when she heard a voice on her mind.

 ** _You put on make-up_**. The voice said on her mind and she recognized the voice as the same one of the weird being she summoned, it was Victoria’s voice. **_Little as possible as to not catch attention and you put a scarf around your neck._**

Two, she’d at first go with eh flow of the moment and covered the scar with make-up but after doing it, she stopped and thought about well the implications of the existence of the voice on her mind. It may seem that she was simply losing her mind after having no contact with people other than her butler, who was still nice to her, and her dad whenever he appeared. Adrien didn’t talk to her, and Sabrina couldn’t because of the class trying to make her have a good life. Key word: _Trying_.

But something she understood was… whatever happened yesterday was _real_.

Chloé closed her eyes before yawning, she rubs her eyes as she looks Jean directly on the eyes. “I’m fine,” she waved her head, dismissive. “Don’t worry about it.”

“May I speak my mind freely?” Jean asked, raising an eyebrow in inquiry.

“…Sure?” Chloé said, unsure about the question.

“You seem more, free so to speak.” Jean said, and Chloé looked at him confused. “More calm, calmer than ever since Miracle Queen. May I ask why? It is certainly a curious thing to see.”

 _Relaxed?_ Chloé face contorted in wonder. At first, when she woke up, she was mostly fine but after knowing that whatever happened yesterday was real and not a dream she began to have second thoughts of her own actions. Then, it made her very disturbed when she thought back at what she had done. She had been happy about the thought of killing. That was something she never thought she would be happy about. She felt guilty about taking someone’s life just because she felt like it in the moment—a part of her, but still, if she had known that everything was real then maybe she would have simply knocked them out.

Not killing beings that were possibly – and had shown, at some level – sentience.

Although a part of her felt guilty for it, another part of her felt pleasure for it, for killing her enemies. It was a contradictory feelings trying to fight for dominance but after accepting at some level her actions, she relaxed her muscles since the sleepiness would get to her if she didn’t pay attention t something interesting.

“You seem more true to herself.” Jean said, breaking her out of her thoughts.

Chloé blinked. “What do you mean?”

“You aren’t hiding behind a mask.” Jean told her before he was called out to do something by another staff member. “Well, Mademoiselle. I’ll wait for you when school is over.” And he walked away.

 _You aren’t hiding behind a mask_. Those words echoed on her head.

Preparing herself to go to school, Chloé quickly went down in the elevator and walked to the limo. She had the yellow-scarf on her neck and she was sporting new clothes.

A black and yellow jacket with a black blouse underneath it, the blouse had a red comb design on the lower left half. She still wore her white pants, though it was of a less white color with strip design on the left right leg.

Chloé walked inside of the limo with a hiding smile under the scarf.

_I don’t need to hide my mask behind you, Jean. You are like my father at this point._

She thought as Victoria began to sing a lullaby to her and it made her go to sleep. She had fifteen minutes, she would use them wisely.

* * *

Gabriel Agreste was flabbergasted, for a time.

No, more like he was confused in every way possible due to the events that’d unfolded in such short amount of time.

He had been preparing the perfect situation to finally get the Bourgeois girl on his side. Gabriel had subtly manipulated the media to make people less than pleased with Chloé’s actions, while also making Adrien had the restriction of not making contact with her to make her life more miserable.

The plan had gone perfectly from what he was told. The girl was completely alone and her anger was rising by the second, he could feel it being bottling up. Bitterness was also rising and hate toward the heroes was also there.

It was the perfect recipe for a strong akuma.

The girl made a perfect villain, she was always a fool for trying to be a hero with her personality. There was no universe in which Chloé Bourgeois becomes a hero, it was simply a laughable thought.

And so, the day arrived. He sent a butterfly toward Le Grand when it was night time for the element of surprise when he felt negative emotions rising up there.

It arrived quickly and the akuma when inside one of the girl’s earrings and the conversation that changed everything happened.

“Chloé Bourgeois.” He started, perfectly knowing what to say to get the girl on his side, like the Rossi girl. “The people of Paris can’t understand your sorrows and pain, how things that you couldn’t control made you accept my decision, like Ladybug’s betrayal to you. They need to understand.” Declaring, he still found no reaction from the girl. Maybe she was listening? Maybe it would easier than he thought it would.

“Come and turn to my side and went I get the miraculous of Ladybug and Chat Noir you can be a hero, loved by everyone.”

Her desperation for love and approval were the perfect spot for him to attack. Teenagers could be so emotional sometimes, and those who grew up without such emotional support were the easiest to manipulate.

But then, something happened. Something he hadn’t expected.

“No, you need to suffer for everything you have done.”

A gun shot rang and he felt his vision black out.

When he came to be again, hours had already passed. He tried to stand up, but his head had a splitting headache and he couldn’t quite think straight, but somethings prevailed.

**_You are a mean person, mister._ **

He heard a voice, a childish voice ringing on his head. It felt intrusive, malevolent hiding beneath that innocent like voice. He looked around and found nothing, so he got his guard up.

**_Prepare yourself, as the game has begun._ **

The voice said as matter-of-fact. It didn’t hold much of the childish emotion it had before, it was growing deeper—distorted, making a chill run up his spine.

**_You tried to use me - us - for your own gain._ **

Gabriel began to noticed that something was wrong, his vision became slightly foggy as the corners went black. A velvet smoke appeared in front of him, it hold malice and a figure step out of the smoke.

 ** _When I catch you, you won’t live to regret it_**.

A girl appeared from it, golden eye and a mad grin on her face. Looking down on him as if he was nothing, which made him very mad. A kid wouldn’t be looking down him!

But something was weird, the girl’s face and figure was very familiar. He swore he saw her somewhere when Adrien was a kid of the age the girl appeared to be.

**_Remember my name. I am—_ **

“Sir!” Natalie’s shout snapped him out, and he looked around to see that the girl was gone. “What happened?”

“Don’t worry about.” Gabriel said, dropping the transformation. His cold gaze looked around and shook his head.

Did I hallucinate that? What did that Bourgeois brat do? I need to investigate this matter; did she commit suicide just to get back at me. What a waste of her life, I should have gotten rid of her when she became a problem. Gabriel looked at Natalie.

“Where is Adrien?” He asked.

“He already left for school.” She informed.

“Call him and tell him to ask for the Bourgeois girl.” He ordered.

“Why?” Natalie was confused, although it wasn’t shown on her expression.

“Just. Do it.” Gabriel said coldly. If the girl died, it would have made news by now.

Natalie took out her phone and dialed up Adrien, the call only went for a couple of seconds before Natalie said to him.

“Chloé Bourgeois is alive and well, Sir.”

Gabriel realized, that the thorn on his side would only grow bigger.

He had to investigate this.

* * *

Chloé arrived at the school and noticed the curious glances of the people around her. Though in between those glances she managed to make out some of disgust and hatred, something she was far too comfortable to be called normal.

It was as if those eyes didn’t hurt her anymore, didn’t make her mad or something. Would this be caused by Victoria?

 ** _Possible_** , she heard Victoria’s voice. **_Though, I still think that they are far too obvious in their stares. If you still had your normal social reputation they wouldn’t do it, cowards. The lot of them._**

The blonde simply went to class, and everything continued as a normal day as someone hated by everyone.

Classes went by and nothing interesting happened, which was weird. Not even Hawkmoth was doing something. It was already almost time to be the end of the school day and no Akuma appeared, yet. Which confused Chloé to no avail.

She’d been absent minded the whole day, not staring at a particular place for too long as she waited for the day to end. When she got bored, she started talking to Victoria about her until they arrive at the point of the words: I am Thou and Thou Art I.

Which Chloé guessed was a way to say I am you and you are me. Although it answered some questions it also raised other as to what she is and what was the place she was in.

Stretching her arms, Chloé yawned before looking at the window beside her seat in the back. She wasn’t seeing it, but she could feel from time to time everyone’s gazes falling on her. Now, she was more or less wishing to go back in time to avoid accepting Hawkmoth’s offer. She regretted doing it.

 ** _Don’t we all?_** Victoria asked sadly on her mind.

 _Do you regret something?_ Chloé asked on her mind, curious and waiting to hear Victoria’s answer.

Victoria sighed. **_Hating a girl that did nothing to me just because she was getting the attention I grew up with, that lead to my downfall by my people. My regret of unrequired hatred toward someone who didn’t deserve it._** She explained, and Chloé found herself in a sympathy-state.

Having everything you’ve lived with being suddenly ripped away from you was bad, but being slowly taken away was worse. It was painful to watch it and people retaliate the best way they can, by eliminating that root-cause of their problems.

But sometimes, that can backfire.

Like Chloé’s and Victoria’s case.

 _Come to think of it… You never told what exactly are you. you simply said that you are me, what does that even mean?_ Chloé asked Victoria, who hummed while doing what Chloé thinks was thinking about an answer.

 ** _I am you and you are me._** Victoria said, and Chloé waited for Victoria to expand on it, she didn’t like having so little information. **_I am the one that was buried within the consciousness of your mind._** **_You know books right? Someone like you should have read some._** Chloé nodded, she remembered reading Alice in Wonderland a couple of times before she turned seven. **_Then, I am a manifestation of your thoughts about the Queen of Hearts, I am her as I am you._**

“So… I am the Queen of Hearts…?” Chloé asked muttering at loud, though no one was close enough to hear her.

 ** _In a way, yes._** Victoria answered. **_But you’ll have to seek that answer yourself._**

“Interesting…” Chloé said while looking upwards, ignoring what was left of the class to be spoken. She had managed to see Ms. Bustier looking at her but didn’t care long enough to see more about the face of the teacher that might as well be an enabler for letting her be a bitch for too long.

Not long after her conversation with Victoria, the class bell rang.

“Ehm… Chloé?” She stiffened for half a second before she whirled around to see Adrien in front of her.

She truly didn’t know what to say to him. Even worse, everyone else was looking in their direction. Drama, Chloé realized, I am not in the right head for it.

**_Let me take care of it._ **

_What—?_

Chloé’s world went black.

* * *

When she regained her bearings, she found herself outside of the school leaning against the wall. Her body felt weird but it quickly washed off the feeling, she’d things to worry about that are more important.

 _What did you do?_ She asked Victoria, wary.

 **_I momentarily took control of your body to deliver some_ ** **strong _words to them, and also to your friend, who seemed to be a little weirded out by your sudden change of clothes. Also, the girl that lies…_**

 _Girl that lies…,_ Chloé thought about it, but only one person fitted that description, _do you mean Lila?_

**_Correct, but don’t worry about it, I also said something to her. They won’t bother you anymore, or at all._ **

Victoria’s words were confusing but when she turned around, she found Lila looking at her by the corner. The Italian girl paled when she caught her eye and presumably ran off.

“What did you say?”

**_I said don’t worry about it._ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter: Chloé goes into the Metaverse with Margaret, a lot of things happen...
> 
> If you see any spelling errors, please let me know.


	4. Beneath Thy Mask pt.2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chloé has some texts conversation with Sabrina, and goes inside of the "Metaverse" with Margaret

Walking down the street and straight to the hotel, Chloé’s phone vibrates and she stopped walking. Reaching out for the pocket and retrieving the phone, she saw how sent her a message.

_Sabrina…_

[Are you ok?]-Sabrina

Such a simple question yet the answer was even lost to her, she’d no idea what Victoria did and she was much eager to find out.

[Why do you ask?]-Chloé

[You seemed very… out of it today.]-Sabrina

[Also, what you said on the classroom to Lila and everyone was… disturbing. You wouldn’t go through that promise. Right?]-Sabrina

 _What did you say!?_ Chloé demanded on her mind, and she felt how Victoria rolled her non-existent eyes.

 ** _That’s for me to know and for you to discover…_** Victoria said before going silent.

Well, if she didn’t know the exact words, she could do at least some damage control.

[I will.]-Chloé

[But only if I am forced to.]-Chloé

[Ok, you think that we can talk. My dad wants to ask you somethings, but I also want to talk to you. It’s been so long and I think that after having some words with the rest of the class is time for you and I to decided something.]-Sabrina

[What?]-Chloé

[Our friendship, I going to talk to you tomorrow since its saturday.]-Sabrina

Chloé shoved her phone down the pocket and looked up. Taking deep breaths, she gazed at the hotel before walking again, ignoring how her heart seemingly stopped for three seconds flat.

 ** _Friendship is such a bother sometimes._** Victoria complained.

_Not going to lie, I concur with you._

**_Of course you do, you are me. If you lied to me, you are lying to yourself._ **

_You are going to use that against me every time possible, aren’t you?_

**_Correct._ **

Chloé groaned.

And Victoria laughed.

* * *

Chloé arrived at the entrance of the hotel. She walked inside and Jean was there to receive her, she greeted him and went to her room to think things better and with more energy than before. Though, she feels that she should let Jean know about her situation, or at least be nicer to him and maybe Sabrina… if she was ever able to.

**_Good idea, be nice to people that were there for you when you were a bitch and you won’t end up like me. They know you better than anyone else._ **

Chloé didn’t need to ask how she would end up as she felt a flare burning softly on the back of her neck. Swallowing her saliva, she walked to her room, and felt a calming song reaching her ears. It was odd, as she did not remember a song like this ever being played on her room, or somewhere on the hotel for that matter.

She opened the door and found herself looking at the woman from her dreams.

The woman was sitting in one of the chairs of the balcony right beside the table, drinking what it looked to be tea and she soon noticed Chloé standing on the door.

“So you’ve arrived.” The woman said, as if everything was very much normal and nothing out of the ordinary. It felt like it was that way, but the events of yesterday always spoke a different tune for her.

Chloé didn’t know what to say, but the woman motioned to the other chair in front of her and Chloé simply closed the door behind her and walked toward it.

Sitting on the chair, Chloé quickly asked. “Who are you?”

“Eager, aren’t we?” The woman noted. “My name is Margaret; can you tell me your name?”

“Chloé Bourgeois.”

“Then, Ms. Bourgeois. I am sure you have questions that have to answered, right?” Margaret asked raising an eyebrow, expectantly.

Chloé nodded.

“Then ask.”

“What was that place? What were those things?” The blonde asked.

“Now, Chloé Bourgeois. Let me ease your worries.”

Margaret said, then after waving her hand a book appeared out of thin air in a velvet light dim-light. “I don’t need you to be tense for this and please, open your mind for everything you are about to hear.”

Chloé nodded as Margaret began to speak in full detail about the events that happened. The platinum-blonde woman began to talk about palaces and towers, about the shadows of people that represent their true selves in comparison to how they act outside.

Chloé also learned of the metaverse and the apathy syndrome.

But her head was still aching after learning all of that, and they’d reached night time by the time Margaret was finishing explaining. Chloé was thankful for the explanation, having information about an unknown situation made it more safe to make a decision that could provoke the less harm toward her… or others.

“So, if shadows are connected to the people they represent… if I hurt a shadow of them, what would happen?” Chloé asked, anxious tone coloring her voice.

“Don’t worry about it. As long as you don’t kill the shadow everything is going to be fine for them.” Replied Margaret.

“And if did?”

“They would have a mental shutdown.” Margaret answered as if there was nothing wrong with that kind of response, as if it was nothing shocking to say or hear at all. But fair, since she is so knowledgeable able about it, maybe she had developed a way to bear with the knowledge of knowing how to kill people without being discovered. “Only if they are palace rulers or they are in mementos, though.”

“Mementos?” Chloé mumbled.

“The Palace of Humanity.” Margaret informed. “It was destroyed so don’t worry about anyone using it to kill people, the last one who did it is having his journey of atonement at the moment.”

_So there was someone who use this power like that._

**_Yeah, power corrupts people. Those born in it tend to get crazy, and those who are giving the power without effort normally go crazier._** Victoria said in her mind, and she assumed that she raised an eyebrow while looking upwards, because Margaret noticed her face expression.

“Talking with your persona?” she asked, and Chloé hesitantly nodded. “The first time I see someone accepting a voice in their heads to easily. Don’t you find it weird?”

“I guess,” Chloé was unsure on how to answer. “I have seen weirder things, to be honest. Can you teach me how to use this power properly?”

“What?” Margaret asked. “You want me to teach you?”

“Yes.” Chloé said, “I need to know the basis of everything. I move with information, if I don’t know the situation that I am in I prefer not to move or go with safe moves.”

Margaret looked at the moon with a blank face, and Chloé didn’t know what she was thinking of. Seconds passed quickly and the woman was still thinking, but it wasn’t long after that she received a reply.

“I will be your guide.” Margaret started. “Every Persona User before you had some sort of guide to teach them the ropes of using this power, the consequences of using it for the wrong purpose and their specific designated job made for them.”

“When do we start?” Chloé asked.

Margaret looked at her non-existent watch before speaking. “Now.”

Chloé looked around, confused and suddenly felt a shift in the atmosphere. Dread began to fill her lungs as her mind began to be foggy, her vision blurred and she fell out of the chair onto the floor. Her mind burned, and suddenly her thoughts were yanked off her brain momentarily.

“Are you ok?” Margaret approached her as she helped the girl to stand up. “That shouldn’t happen…”

“What happened?” Chloé managed to rasp out, shaking her head she finally stood up on place. She glanced down finally taking in the sudden transformation of her clothes into something more of a high-class member of royal society.

It was a dress in the upper part of the body mixed with a tailcoat that was the lower part, mainly the black-pants. Black and red colors dancing like roses, golden details sparkling here and there in harmony like a honey comb. Long sleeved gloves that reached her shoulders and a mask in her face like those for a party where you are supposed to hide your identity.

“What is this?” Chloé asked, gesturing at her clothes.

“Your will of rebellion, so to speak.” Margaret answered.

“Could I change them?” The blonde asked.

“You can’t, and even if you could, I wouldn’t recommend it.” Margaret suggested.

“Why?”

“Because it would be changing a part of yourself, you will change and you wouldn’t know it. Some sort of brainwashing, but less noticeable.”

Chloé paled, _something like Hawkmoth?_

 ** _Not quite. You have to do it willingly, when your perception of yourself changes, your clothes will do too. If its forcefully change by an outside force, it would affect you then._** Victoria clarified.

Chloé looked at Margaret, who simply motioned at the edge of the balcony while looking at her expectantly.

“What?” The blonde asked, confused.

Margaret – while sighing - simply walked to the railing and jumped down.

Chloé quickly moved forward and saw how Margaret landed unscathed.

 _How?_ Chloé’s mind was racing with thoughts, trying to come up with an answer. The ground was so far away that it would practically kill someone if they fell off from there. Should she jump like her?

**_Believe that you will be fine, and you will be fine._ **

Victoria’s words calmed her down enough to finally get the guts to do as Margaret did.

She breathed in, out and jumped down. Chloé had expected to at least feel a little bit of pain, but before she knew it she was already on the ground beside Margaret. The woman was looking where Chloé jumped from, and the blonde decided to look at where Margaret is looking at, to know more about the situation.

“What… is this?” Her mouth let out.

“This, as I told you, is a palace.” Margaret answered, looking at her while waving her hand toward the building in front of them.

Le Grand had been replaced by a tall tower that resides in its place. It had big windows that could very well be at least three-average-person tall, and were bright as the light inside made the windows be on a golden hue that screamed ‘Money!’. There were security cameras all outside, lights could be seen falling on the ground and Chloé figured out that the lights are were the cameras are currently looking at, and she didn’t want to know what would happen if one of those lights fell on her.

Margaret touched her shoulder and she looked at he while nodding toward the nearby woods around the tower. When did those woods appear? Wondered Chloé, but swallowed her questions as the shock of the scenery was overwhelming her.

“This is a palace?” Chloé asked for clarification as she saw a drone pass by, the night sky above made everything more bizarre that it already was, but maybe she could get accustomed to the scenery, _maybe_ being the key words here.

“Correct,” Margaret answered. “This is the distorted desires of someone who sees your home as a tower. Who is that, I don’t know, so I think we need your insight on the matter.”

“What does distorted desire means on this contest?”

Margaret gave her a confused look, before replying. “Everything they do has been warped by something, that something being their distorted desire. They do everything they believe is their right to do, even if it hurts other in the process, because they don’t believe they are doing wrong.”

Chloé winced and that explanation. It sounded so much like her that is disturbing.

 ** _You just need to change to be associated with that description anymore, as simple as that_**. Victoria spoke, and she nodded to herself.

“Ok, someone that could see this place as a tower.” Chloé grabs her chin as she thought. _Someone who sees this instead of a simple hotel. It has to be someone that is a lot of time there, or at least has strong ties to the hotel to see it as a tower. An employ? Someone who resides there currently? Maybe… mom or dad… could possibly be. I have to see all variables… “I have an idea, but it would have to wait until we are out of here.”_

“Could you please elaborate?”

“It has to be someone with close affiliation to the hotel, so some employ or _parents_ …” Chloé started, not even trying to hide her flinch. Margaret simply watched silently. “So, I can have my butler look for information in a way he doesn’t know it while I see if one of my parents… you know.” She simply pointed at the tower.

Margaret nodded at her words, before looking back at the tower. More specifically, to a point that wasn’t being watched by more than two cameras. “Then, let’s teach you the ropes.” She said before moving toward the space that looked like an alley for the trash and Chloé ran after her, her footsteps were nothing but a whisper due to the drones and all the sound that came from the tower.

When they arrived at the alley, Chloé simply pretended to ignore the portrait that was in the trash that had young her marked with a red X over the face.

* * *

They entered the tower through a back window that was opened for some reason that Chloé couldn’t began to comprehend. As she touched the floor as looked around to see that they were in a bodega where cooking ingredients were.

Then, footsteps could be heard and Chloé looked at Margaret, who pointed at the door and leaned against the wall beside it. Chloé did the same, but she was kneeling as she peeked through the door to see what was on the other side of it.

“What are you doing?!” She saw a shadow shouting, seemingly scolding another one that looked vaguely female-like. “We have to prepare everything for tomorrow!”

“I can’t do this anymore…” The shadow said, it was kneeling on the ground, almost pleading or begging, Chloé didn’t know. “I want to rest…”

“You—!” The first shadow cut himself off, before something moved along its head. Then, out of nowhere. “Then, you can go and rest forever!” It grabbed the shadow on the floor of the head and sunk its head on what it seemed the grill, the cries of agony that echoed throughout the room disturbed her and Chloé turned around to not see the scene anymore.

The vile riled up on her throat but she swallowed it down. She felt an impulse inside of her, something that made her want to go and kill the bastard. The cries of agony died down, and she heard something fall on the floor making a thump.

Chloé looked around and saw a knife on a crate. She grabbed it, her knuckles might as well turn white due to how hard she was gripping as she felt her desire to kill rise forth. Opening the door as silent as possible as she rushed forward.

“What—?”

“Shut it.” Chloé said, coldly and to the point.

She didn’t know what came to her, but suddenly her hand began to move and she put a hand over the shadows’ mouth, if it even had one. It was pure reflex, she didn’t know how it happened, but she began stabbing the shadow in all places with rage and fury as nothing she had felt before. She grabbed knife, that turned into a sword somehow, and stabbed the shadow on the neck, before beheading it.

_Off with his head…_

When Chloé look slowly at what she had done, and what happened before it.

She wondered, _whose palace is this?_

Who is making her act this way?

_Because it isn’t Victoria…_

Who, then?

“Let’s go.” Margaret said, somewhere behind her.

Chloé nodded, and walked behind her guide for this Palace.


	5. |First Floor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette recalls the events that happened in class, and wonders what's happening with everything after Miracle Queen.
> 
> Chloé gets to do her first battle on the Palace and gets to know new information.

Blinking her eyes blearily, Marinette Dupain-Cheng stared at her ceiling wondering about the world.

She normally wouldn’t do something like this, but strange things were happening and she had no idea what to do with them. It all would be “Normal” if it was miraculous related, but strange things had been happening ever since Miracle Queen and she had no information about it. not even Tikki had—no, she knew, but wouldn’t tell her.

 _“If it is what I think it is, then miraculous can’t do anything about it without his permission.”_ Is what Tikki said when she asked about it.

Marinette rolled in her bed to the side, her face looking at the window—at the moon, without much of a thought crossing her mind as she tried to fall asleep, but failing to do so.

Today had been the weirdest to date. It all started with that strange feeling that there was something—someone watching her from afar—but she could shake that off without problem, she had felt worse sometimes.

What she couldn’t understand or even try to is what happened at school. Everything had gone south when the bell of the end of the classes rang and everyone began to reach for their things to go home or somewhere else after class. She saw Adrien walking to Chloé—Marinette tried not to think much about her, her hatred for her extinguished once she understood what she did—and they began talking.

That’s when things became even more weirder, and worrying, in her opinion.

 _“Ehm… Chloé?”_ Marinette heard Adrien calling out the name of the other blonde.

She saw how Chloé’s body stiffened for half-second before she whirled around to face Adrien with a confused expression.

Marinette looked around to see everyone else watching the coming exchange of words, and she is pretty sure Alix was prepare to make Chloé remember what she had done if she got out of line. Marinette was pretty sure half of the class was the same, even Lila, though the Italian would only do it to win point with Adrien, Marinette knew that perfectly.

The atmosphere became tense after Chloé closed her eyes. It was like something had everyone bound to place, unable to do anything as she saw when she looked around after getting that dreaded feeling of _death_ surrounding her.

 _“Yes?”_ Chloé said, in a voice that somehow didn’t sound like her but it was. She opened her eyes slowly, revealing her blue eyes having a lingering shine that Marinette had never seen before.

 _“Do you think we can talk?”_ Adrien asked, looking very nervous.

 _“Don’t have the time Agreste, there are something I have to take care of.”_ Chloé said in a cold voice, looking at Adrien as if they’d never been friends before. Adrien took a step back, and even Marinette was confused and stupefied.

Chloé would have never shut down an opportunity to be around Adrien before. _What_ was _happening_ here?

“But—” Adrien tried to say something, but he was cut off by Chloé.

_“Honestly, it would be better if you simply were with you mindless friends acting as sheep because no-one has a sense of individuality, apparently. Always following the wolf in sheep clothing that is Lila Rossi, the bitch couldn’t have done a better job in recruiting people without brains.”_

Lila looked hurt at those words, though Marinette knew—as she tried to ignored the increasing sense of danger that is creeping on her nerves—that it is actually her simply acting to get everyone to protect her. And it made effect immediately as Alya jumped head first to open her mouth for the defense of the Italian.

 _“Hey!”_ Alya shouted in anger, apparently talking through the shaking she had across her body. _“Who do you think you are!? Lila is ten time better than you!”_

 _“In lying.”_ Chloé said, with an amused smile. _“You better shut it up, first sheep—Or mindless peasant is better? You are the one caught deeper in a web of lies.”_

 _“Lila isn’t lying! What’s your problem with her?”_ Alya demanded, but stopped at the predatory grin that Chloé displayed. The blonde simply ignored Adrien as she stood up and walked to Alya without much problem, the air around her made Marinette bristled.

 _“Oh Cesaire, Cesaire. I thought journalist checked their sources?”_ Chloé spoke in a mocking tone, was it Marinette, or Chloé’s shadows was deforming itself into something else? _“The fact that Lila hasn’t proved anything that she’s said she did makes it even more pitiful. You don’t check your sources, you’re a hypocrite even before being an ass of a friend. Seriously, not defending Dupain-Cheng, someone who you called your best friend makes you someone unreliable to trust in. Maybe I would call my dad and simply get an investigation on the allegations that Lila did, simply to see if what she said is true… and if it’s not, I would make him ban Lila form ever returning to France.”_

 _“Why are you being so mean!?”_ Lila cried out, tears beginning to spill from her eyes. _“Why are you so distrusting?! Was it Marinette that talked to you?”_

Everyone turned to Marinette, who simply resigned in knowing that Lila would do anything possible to make her life miserable. Though, before she could say anything or anyone saying anything to her, Chloé spoke up again.

 _“Can you shut up, you pathetic excuse of a human being that can’t do anything on your own and uses people as you breathe because of how miserable your life is without having a sense of importance?”_ Chloé asked as she glared daggers at Lila.

Marinette swallowed her saliva as she froze on the spot. She momentarily looked down and saw Tikki sticking her head out of the purse in the stealthiest way possible to not be caught. Tikki was glaring at the shadow instead of Chloé, why was that? She also looked worried, why?

She looked at the shadow and noticed something. It no longer looked like Chloé, it looked like a headless woman with an ax on one hand. Suddenly, the air around them began to get heavier and everyone began to fall down on their knees. Some looked spooked and looked around, other tried to stand up but couldn’t.

Marinette was worried about what this could mean.

The only other one that hasn’t fallen onto their knees is Adrien and Sabrina was holding up. Though that might because they had been around Chloé longer than anyone else. Adrien’s expression, however, expressed shock and slowly built up dread on his eyes.

 _“What?”_ Lila asked, her knees gave up and she fell on her sit. She was trembling, and though Alix, Kim and other tried to stand up for her they couldn’t talk.

 _“You know; I think you don’t know the story of the bloody years of the French revolution.”_ Chloé began, walking closer to Lila. She puts a hand over in the desk and the other in the rear of the sit, ensuring a blockade for Lila. _“The times where everyone was eligible for something very, very common back then. You know what it is?”_

Lila didn’t answer, too shaken to speak.

Chloé spoke the words and Lila went pale as milk. Suddenly, Marinette felt as her vision began to blacken but managed to see a figure appearing from Chloé’s shadow. It held up the ax and swung it toward Lila’s neck. Three seconds later, her vision returned to normal and she saw Chloé walking down to leave the classroom while ignoring everyone, as if they are not worth their time.

Marinette shook her head, returning from the memory world to the real one.

She rolled back to the opposite site, her back to the window.

And tried to sleep.

* * *

Margaret looked over her shoulder to see the girl that she’d decided to guide through her first experience with this mess of a life.

“Come.” She commanded in whispers, Chloé walked up to her as she looked around.

“This is the first floor from the knowledge I have about this Palace.” Margaret informed as they watched more shadows moving around, carrying things and some of them even carrying crates that Margaret knew were for the storage room of the kitchen.

“First floor?” Chloé asked as she kneeled beside her leaning her back agasint the wall, looking around. _Assessing the situation, good_. Margaret could to work with this one very well. “There are floors on Palaces?”

“It depends.” Margaret tells the girl as they looked at what it seemed to be the entrance from a position that shadows are not likely to find them. “Not all palaces are the same, and not all of them are restricted to floors. The deeper we go, or in this case the higher, the more we know about whose palace’s is this and their distorted desire.”

“So,” Chloé began. “How many floors does this tower have?”

“That is something we have yet to know.” Margaret said in a flat tone. “So, since this tower has something personal to do with you. what should we do?” She asked, trying to see where the girl’s brain would take her. If she wasn’t reckless she definitely would be fine with this girl.

Chloé looked around, noticing the sections where the entrance was divided. The twin-stairs that led to the elevator being guarded by two shadows that had knight armor. It was very obvious were the most important part of the palace was, yet it was very obvious that whoever’s palace this is, it seemed that that person saw no one as a threat.

“I think is better so simply wipe out this whole floor and see all of the information. If this is someone with strong-ties with the hotel, then I should be able to recognize more or less their thought process.” The blonde girl said as she cocked her head, raised an eyebrow in confusion and face began to contort into frustration.

“What happened?”

“Victoria is saying weird things about killing everyone that stands in my way.” Chloé admitted, looking uncomfortable yet not so much. “But killing people who did nothing to me is a bit of an overkill in my opinion.”

“Then kill those that attack you.” Margaret said as she pointed toward the guards. Chloé looked at them before looking back at Margaret, who pointed up at a chandelier. “Get up there, jump down into one of the guard and rip the helmet off. The element of surprised shall be your ally from now on.”

\\+++/

Chloé looked at the chandelier and tried to picture a good way to get up there. She looked around, crouched as she focused her eyes on her surroundings. She ignored everything else as she looked from left to right, bottom and up until she found a very capable way of getting there without much effort.

 ** _Use the surroundings, stop thinking and let your heart guide you._** Victoria instructed in her mind. Chloé felt a nudged on her mind and looked to the side. A column that had some decorations imbedded on the column itself that could pretty much be capable of withholding—resisting—the weight of a human being.

The blonde quickly moved, stealthy as possible as she observed the gathering of shadows around, focusing on moving when no one was close to spotting her. It was a slow movement process, but she will hear out Margaret’s words before anything else when it comes this.

If the element of surprised was to be her ally, then she might as well be the opposite of an attention-seeker. Chloé tilted her head as she thought about it, but decided not to dwell too much on it as she reached the column and began to climb it.

She regretted never paying attention to Kim’s antics of climbing things, she would’ve gotten valuable insight on how to do this more or less. She climbed until she was a very high position and looked down, Margaret was there observing here and nodded, letting her know that she has to continue.

Margaret grabbed her tome from What Chloé could discern from her position more or less far away from her. The platinum-blonde woman grabbed a card and broke it, a little fairy appeared and Margaret told something to it.

The fairy flew to Chloé. “Margaret says that she will create a small distraction for you. Use it. She will wait until you are in the chandelier.” And then disappeared back into a card again, and flew back toward Margaret’s tome.

Chloé nodded to herself, not letting the anxiety that was building up do her wrong. She had nothing to fear, she had someone watching over her. Someone that has expectation about her overall display of abilities but wasn’t expecting too much of her. Not like her mother, but more like a master.

To decide on how to proceed. Chloé perfectly knew that mentality, it was something akin to what she used to torment people with the truth.

 _I feel like an ass._ The blonde thought, she heard Victoria chuckling and rolled her eyes.

“What is that?” Chloé heard someone beneath her asking. She caught her breath as she used the column as a means to conceal her appearance thanks to the decorates of the columns.

“Are you sure you saw something?” A male voiced answered.

“I drank a lot.” The same voice that asked the question said, in a voice akin to understanding.

“That must be it.” The male voiced replied.

Chloé looked down and saw that everyone attention had been diverted. She sighed in relief and looked at the chandelier before jumping to it. She almost failed the jump and barely managed to grab the rim, she propelled herself up and crouched once again.

Narrowing her eyes, she now a full landscape of the First Floor of this palace. The guest—shadows, all of them—are in the entrance having something similar to a rich gathering. She could see people near fountains made out of crystal that had liquor in them, some giant cake for some reason who had the words “A. B.” in the top in golden letter with sparkling stars around that made Chloé’s eyes hurt.

She whirled around and saw the guards, to only noticed that they seemed the only guards on the whole floor. There were places she couldn’t properly see, so she decided to not get cocky. She’d played too many games with Adrien to know what happens when you get cocky in said-to-be “safe places”. She shivered at the memories of getting ambushed.

 _Wait…_ Chloé realized something. _Why is it getting colder here?_ Passed through her mind before she looked down at the cake.

Ice began to sprout from the floor and began to rise upwards in a quick pace. The shadows watched in wonder at the glacier that was forming before them, most of them looking at it in wonder and some even in fear—obviously not knowing what is happening.

Ice began to sprout from the floor and began to rise upwards in a quick pace. The shadows watched in wonder at the glacier that was forming before them, most of them looking at it in wonder and some even in fear—obviously not knowing what is happening.

“What is happening here?!”

“Clear the way!”

Both guards moved as quickly as the ice began appearing. The two of them went through a different stair and Chloé thought if she should go for the one that is the closest. Although, if she went for the one that is far away, it would give her a few seconds top of advantage if the other one gets alerted so she went with that. Also, the space and not having close movement are always accepted.

 _Let’s do this._ Chloé said in her mind before breathing in and out. A light appeared on her vision, right on her waist was strapped a gun. In the other side was her sheathed sword. _What was the saying? Maximum effort?_

She shook her head and jumped.

“What—!?” The guard reacted at her landing on his shoulders but Chloé was faster than his own reaction. She grabbed the edge of the helmet and rip it out of the face. Chloé jump back with a backflip and landed to the see the armor trembling and going down with a black ooze leaking to later be morphed into a creature she’d never seen before.

It was a red-armored knight with a lance riding a black horse. Chloé quickly took noticed of Margaret taking care of the other guard, and also the fact that the “guest” were also gone. It meant she didn’t have to care about them, good.

 ** _Aww…_** Victoria gave a sigh of disappointment, but Chloé mostly ignored it.

 **“Someone that was not invited?”** The armored knight said in a curious tone. **“Who might be this disgrace for the crown? A thief?”**

“You don’t have to know!” Chloé shouted in reply, quickly drawing her gun and shooting it. “ _Persona_!”

Victoria bursts into existence, a maniacal grin adorning her face.

“Execution!” Chloé commanded and Victoria rushed forward. The persona swung the ax but was parried by the lance of the knight, who charged forward with the horse, making Victoria momentarily disappear as she felt slightly tired after using the move.

She steeling herself, Chloé moved to the side with a quick jump. Fast enough to avoid most of the damage but the blade of the lance made a wound on her feet, ignoring the pain she raised her gun again and summoned her persona once more. This time, she would do something trickier.

“Judgment.” She whispered.

The ground shook slightly and a stopwatch clock appeared beneath the knight. He looked down, and Chloé also looked down but quickly jumped back as she instantly knew what was about to happen. Victoria’s feelings of warning were enough, so she decided to step back. The hands of the clock started from zero, and went around speeding up by the second, it suddenly stopped after three seconds and stopped in the number three. A chain appeared from the little hand and wrapped itself around the knight, it burned itself into the armor as Chloé watched in wonder what was happening.

 **“Hmn?”** The knight hummed. **“What is this?”**

Chloé wondered the same.

 ** _Don’t worry, just survive three minutes and you’ll know. Stall if you have to._** Victoria said in her mind. **_I’m just preparing the show but you can try to kill him before that._**

Chloé tilted her head, but said nothing. With a quick glance toward Margaret, Chloé knew that she was already done with the knight on her part, as the woman was leaning in the wall looking at her. As if a master watching her pupil to see how she is going to do. Chloé sighed but prepared herself.

 _Three minutes._ She thought, narrowing her eyes. _I can work with that._

 **“What did you do?”** The knight asked, pointing his lance toward her. She didn’t fear it, she trusted that if things went south Margaret will help her.

“Why are you asking that kind of questions to a thief?” She mocked, embracing her full cocky persona. “Weren’t you saying that I was a disgrace to your crown, why ask questions instead of figuring out yourself? Or it could be… you are stupid enough to not know.” She faked gasped.

 **“You shall die.”** The knight said. **“You will remember the name of Eligor before you see your last minutes of life.”**

“Of course.” Chloé clapped her hands with an annoying smirk. “Eligor, the Dumbest Knight of the Crown.”

Eligor charged forward enraged. Chloé quickly unsheathed her sword and moved out of the way, after Eligor passed her Chloé quickly moved and slashed the legs of the horse. A leg was gone, but the horse was still standing which couldn’t be possible. Yet again, she was reminded that this situation wouldn’t be possible in the first place.

 _Get over it Chloé._ She said to herself.

Chloé was now the one who charged at the knight, and swung her sword at the knight. It impacted, and dealt damage to the knight, but not enough to even slightly make him recoil and lose seconds of reaction.

Eligor jerked the lanced and slammed it into Chloé which launched her toward the liquor fountain, all the contents on the table were thrown out as the fountain—or what was left of it—fell on the ground.

The blonde quickly used her hands to get up from the ground. The pain of the impact far greater than she had ever imagined, and she understood that fighting without Victoria will be something that is going to be a tough thing.

But she had to trust _her_ self in this matter, if Victoria said wait three minutes Chloé will wait three minutes.

 **“You aren’t very experience in this…”** Eligor said, and he didn’t notice but Chloé did, the chains were getting brighter in a velvet light, almost cursed--if she had to guess, it meant that time was already arriving. **“ _Rakunda_!”**

What?

Chloé saw how she felt weaker for some reason, this meant something bad for her. Even so, she readied herself, time was coming to an end she couldn’t back down now.

Eligor charged forward and Chloé tried to avoid being hit, but she was caught up by the blade of the lance, which managed to get a hit on her torso beside sending her to the nearest wall. Pain cursed through her body as she tried to pry herself off the wall, the sound of horse-heels came near and she saw how Eligor stood before her.

“You weren’t even that much of a fight.” He said, as he prepared himself to thrust the lance forward at her heart. “Pride will always lead to downfall.”

The chains on his body burned brighter than before. Chloé looked discreetly over his shoulder and saw something before familiar of French history appearing form the ground slowly, she had to stall Eligor for a couple of more seconds and it’s her victory!

“Really?” Chloé asked. “Tell me something since I am going to die by your hands.”

 **“Information, eh? I’ll grant you your dying wish, what do you wish to know?”** Eligor asked.

“Who is your leader?” She asked in a curious voice.

 **“Her name cannot be leaked to someone like you.”** Eligor said. **“It could be leaked to people like you, that will try to harm her.”**

 _A woman then._ Chloé concluded, it would drop off the list a lot of people. Still, she had no idea who it could be or she was simply oblivious at the obvious answer. Chloé looked again over Eligor’s shoulder and grinned.

“Can I ask something?”

**“What?”**

“How do you feel about guillotines?” Chloé asked innocently.

Before Eligor could say anything the chains on his armor began to glow velvet and restricted his movements. They closed around him, tying him up and began to drag him toward the guillotine behind him slowly as to make him know what his fate was. Chloé felt a tug on her chest as she watched Victoria rise from the ground beside the guillotine with a grin on her face, Margaret had walked beside the other part of the guillotine, inspecting the execution artifact intently.

The blonde pull herself from the wall, the blood seeping from her torso as she puts a hand on the place where the slash made contact.

Chloé looked at Margaret, who raised an eyebrow as if waiting for something to happen and then looked at Victoria, who had a hand on the lever as the head of Eligor was shoved in the hole, prepared to be severed.

The blonde simply raised her thumb and made a motion of cutting a head. Victoria nodded and pulled the lever down, the blade from the guillotine fell down rapidly and cuts the head of Eligor off. The body began to disappear, and paper began to be left behind after the body completely disappear into a black mist.

“What is that?” Chloé asked, going closer and kneeling to see the papers as she winced in pain. “Money?”

“This is something that not even I can answer.” Margaret said, looking through her tome. She grabbed a card and threw into the ground, it broke and a fairy appeared in the air. It was the same fairy Chloé saw talking to her. “ _Dia._ ”

Chloé felt the pain from the wound beginning to disappear as she was covered in a green light. Though, the lingering pain still there, she didn’t feel anything close to the real one. You win some, you lose some.

“But it is legal money in a way, so don’t worry in using it in the real world. As long as you are smart enough, nobody should be able to question why you have so much money.” Margaret informed before turning and walking toward the elevator. “Come, let’s go to the elevator.”

“Wait.” Chloé quickly said as she stood up and walked behind Margaret, leaving Victoria to take all the money left by Eligor. She felt Victoria retreating back into her mind as she stepped into the elevator.

“See.” Margaret pointed.

Chloé saw the floors that belong into this Palace.

_First._

_Second._

_Third._

_Fourth._

_Fifth._

The fifth floor button had a crown on top of it. _So that’s the place where the palace ruler should be,_ Chloé concluded in her mind. “We should go to the second floor now.”

“No.” Margaret said sharply. Chloé looked at her confused.

“What?”

“I’ve concluded that why you have a great potential for this, you are still a teenager. On top of it, you were harmed so you should rest and we can go back tomorrow, though, I won’t be able to always be with you here.” Margaret said, a finger on her chin. “But I can make something for that later.”

“Then what now?” Chloé asked.

“Now you go back to sleep.” Margaret said, her voice low as the air shifted around her.

Chloé watched as how the buttons of the palace morphed and turned back into the buttons of the hotel. In a flash, her clothes changed into her normal ones and she suddenly felt incredible exhausted. She leaned back into the cold metal of the elevator as Margaret pushed the button that will take them to Chloé’s room.

The door opened and Chloé walked tiredly toward her room. Somehow she felt incredible tired and she doesn’t know why, she looked back and saw how Margaret waved at her as the elevator closes. The blonde blinked but didn’t say much, she would ask Margaret tomorrow when she sees her.

She went inside her room after closing her door and threw herself onto the bed. She didn’t care about anything else more than a good sleep in the moment.

Tomorrow she will have a talk with Sabrina, she wasn’t look forward to it. but she can guess that’ll go as smoothly as everything else, Sabrina leaving her to be happier. And fair enough, Chloé would fault her for it.

 ** _Just sleep._** Victoria whispered in her mind.

Chloé rolled in her bed, her face looking at the ceiling as she closed her eyes slowly.

And she went to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First Floor - Entrance, Kitchen.  
> \---------------------------------  
> So we have the new chapter here. My brain has been a lazy mess in the last couple of days as it wandered into the depths of fanfiction and gave me ideas for other things. But i made the chapter, so good job brain. Also, if you see any spelling mistakes do tell me. 
> 
> Give your thoughts about this chapter.


	6. |Of Talks and Velvet Bonds

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bonds are established and talks ensues discoveries.

Platinum-blonde hair waved against the darkness of the corridor, face straight and firm as Margaret walked toward her Master’s place. She stopped walking, right before the butterfly symbol on the shrouding darkness beneath her, the symbol glowed in a velvet light and suddenly the light burst into existence. Velvet vines rose from the blackness; Wood began to form around it as a door began to simply wilt itself into existence.

Margaret simply watched carefully as the door completed itself before grabbing the doorknob and walk inside of it. a flash appeared before her eyes, blinding them for half a second before her eyes got comfortable at the sudden change in the light around them. She stepped forward and walked inside of the Velvet Room.

“It seems that you are troubled.” She heard her Master speaking as she walked, Margaret whirled her head to look at him, his usual relaxed face as he stared down at something on his wooden desk.

Margaret will admit that she was slight troubled—but not to anyone, if she was able to. She walked and sat on her favorite chair as her muscles relaxed. She grabbed her tome on her hand and opened it as she stared at the image of the sleeping form of Chloé with the rising sun at the distance.

“Do you have anything to share?” Igor asked looking up at her, his head resting in the back of both of his hands as he looked expectantly.

“Ms. Bourgeois has quite the grasp on the situation far better than any of the Persona Users from before.” Margaret informed, not looking up. “It could be because of the situation surrounding the population of Paris and the instability I presume exist due to the villain I’ve heard about.”

“That seems to be the case.” Igor nodded at her words. “The Seal has been breached slightly and Yaldabaoth’s schemes made it weaker. The universe is not in its right place, and humanity doesn’t know it, yet.”

“What do we do?” The assistant asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Help Ms. Bourgeois clear out the Palace, my master has an idea to rebalance the universe without messing with it too much.” Igor clapped his hands slowly.

“Any particular reason for that request?” Margaret asked as she got up from the chair. She watched as a Velvet Door wilted itself into existence in the corner of the Velvet Room.

“Because the bonds she will make will help us all.” Igor said, grinning. “She will truly be an interesting guest. I am particularly eager to meet her.”

“You would allow someone without the potential for a contract enter the Velvet Room, Master?” Margaret inquired, surprised.

“It wouldn’t be the first time. And, it didn’t bother you the last time.” Igor told her. “Besides, she is an anomaly in-on-itself. I know you wouldn’t mind her coming here.”

Margaret couldn’t deny it, after all, she had felt the anomaly that is Chloé Bourgeois first hand. She had felt a growing longing from the girl’s heart, a long to finally be allowed to do something outside within the girl’s soul. Also, Margaret felt that Chloé was one of the people who was greatly damage by Yaldabaoth messing with the natural order of everything. His mission to allow everything to be comfortable with their situation should be the cause of the regression on the girl from what she knew.

Besides, the girl needed someone to instruct her further in this world she was thrusted in.

“Very well, I shall go and meet her.” Margaret said as she walked toward the door.

“Before you go, remember something.” Igor said.

“What?”

“Have some fun with her.” Igor said, chuckling at the confusion adorning Margaret’s face. “The tension lingering in your body needs to be released. You will succeed in your mission, I know it, and your bond with Chloé could be the reason for it.”

Margaret stood there for a couple of seconds, not knowing what to say. She had never thought about bonding with a human, as there was no need for her to do it. then again, every Velvet assistant has bonded with one. Elizabeth with The Messiah, Marie with the Truthseeker, Lavenza with The Trickster. So maybe she should do it as well, as her siblings grew stronger because of it. _Bonds that preserve through time and space_ , she remembered the words her master said to her when Elizabeth went out trying to find a way to help The Messiah.

Maybe she should bond with the girl?

<><><><><>

_My body hurts…_ Chloé thought. Blue eyes fluttering awake as she stirred in her bed, her body ached with pain as she tried not to move too much. She hadn’t felt anything like this before, not even when she received hits while being Queen Bee, it was in a whole new level. Then again, everything from the past three days was new.

She used her arms to sit up on her bed, her back cracked with pain as she panted trying to sit. Chloé managed to sit on her bed and looked around, she threw a hand to her face and rubbed it around as to wake up more quickly.

Chloé realized something as the fog in her brain was clearing up.

The talk with Sabrina.

She was so not looking forward to it.

Chloé groaned in pain as she got up from the bed, her feet touching the floor as a sparkle of pain reached her back. It was as painful as before, so she guessed her body was getting comfortable with the pain. She didn’t know if that was a good or bad thing, as her body had never been abused to that extend since the miraculous magic would protect her body—somewhat.

 _I don’t want to talk with Sabrina_ … Chloé thought casting a look down to the floor as she walked to her bathroom.

 ** _You have to._** She heard Victoria speaking in her mind. **_Talk with her, communication was the reason for my demise, don’t be like me._**

Which practically translated to don’t be yourself, change to not end up dead.

“Ok, ok.” Chloé muttered under her breath, she will decide to heed Victoria’s words.

She should be able to bear with whatever Sabrina says to her, but she doesn’t know what to expect from Sabrina’s father, as she doesn’t know him too well afar from the fact that he doesn’t want Sabrina around her, which, fair enough.

Chloé went and took a bath, her body finally alleviating itself from the pain she felt when she woke up. It felt nice, not being in pain, but Chloé guessed that she would be in it every time she went inside of the Palace, also, she would have to change her sleeping habits for as long as the Palace exists.

She changed into some unfamiliar clothes for everyone else in the world. A long-sleeved white-blouse with black stripes beneath a yellow-sleeveless open-hoodie, she also decided to wear black combat pants with yellow details in the pockets and black low-heel boots. All of it approved by her mom when she was at work, so it was all right for her to wear it without problem.

“Mademoiselle Chloé, are you awake?” Jean’s voice came from behind the door.

Chloé blinked, slightly disoriented by the voice of her butler. She truly needed to make it up to him after all the things he had to bear with because for her. If she was to show Ladybug that she didn’t need her to be good, that she didn’t change because of her, then Chloé would feel a lot better about herself.

If only to make amends with those she knows deserve it, because Ladybug isn’t one of them.

After what she’d done, Chloé was done with heroes.

She wasn’t one, and she knew it.

Everyone knew it.

“Yes.” Chloé answered Jean’s question as she got up from the bed and grabbed her phone beside the pillow. She walked toward the door while moving her shoulder up and down to relax herself, Chloé grabbed the door knob and opened the door, and saw Jean standing in front of her with an expression of surprise.

“May I ask what’s the occasion, Mademoiselle?” Jean asked, twirling with his mustache as he looked at her as if intrigued with her clothes.

“I have to talk with Sabrina, she sent me a message yesterday.” Chloé replied while putting her phone inside of her left pocket.

“Oh…” Jean hummed. “Shall I prepare your driver to come here immediately or do you wish to eat breakfast first?”

“You don’t need to call the driver, I’ll walk there.” Chloé said under her breath, loud enough for Jean to hear it since she wouldn’t say that in her normal volume. She could practically feel his surprise as she continued. “I know where she lives, I’ll eat breakfast outside today.”

“Then I will tell the cooks that you will not eat breakfast today.” Jean said with an acknowledging nod as he began to walk away.

“Jean…” Chloé called out and she watched him whirled around to look at her. “Let me tell the cooks with you.” She said as she walked beside Jean, she’d nothing to lose and she could at least try to apologize to the cooks for being an ass, though she knows for sure than one of them will not forgive her.

“Very well, Mademoiselle.” Jean smiled, and Chloé felt like they grew closer, if even a little.

_I am thou, thou are I._

_Thou hast established a new bond._

_From thy day onward, The Hierophant shall be confidant in thy kingdom._

Chloé blinked when the words appeared in her mind, not voice spoke them, they simply appeared but she made no noticed of them, simply continued walking with Jean toward the elevator.

“Where are mom and dad?” she asked as they stepped into the elevator.

“Monsieur Bourgeois is on a trip on the other side of France, since he has to do a lot of things and ensure than the police and no one can blame you for your actions as Miracle Queen.”

Chloé grimaced at those words but said nothing and showed no emotion nor reaction to them. “And mom?”

“She is in her room, yelling at people for being ridiculous.”

“Of course she is.” Chloé muttered before turning on the cogs in her brain. It was fairly obvious that he mother was the palace ruler because there was no one else who could fit the bill from the little she saw on the Palace.

 _I am so not ready to see what kind of distorted desire she has…_ The blonde thought as the doors of the elevator opened once again.

<><><><><>

Lila Rossi stood sat in a bench somewhere beside Le Grand, fidgeting with her phone as she stared at the message she was sent by who she assumed was Hawkmoth, because there was no one else who would send her a message so ominous as this one.

[Investigate Chloé Bourgeois and reply to this number with all the information that you gain, if anything is out of the ordinary reply immediately.] – Unknown

She stared at her message before shaking her head, taking a deep breath she watched as Chloé stepped out of the hotel with clothes she had never seen the blonde wearing before. She looked normal, not with the bloodlust she felt yesterday.

_Feeling the cold steel going through her neck, her blood beginning to spray out of her body as she looked at the wicked smile over her. The figure hovering above her, a monster, a demon, something from Satan himself—_

Lila swallowed as she pressed the memory away and subconsciously grabbed her neck and began to follow the blonde. She truly, truly didn’t want to do this.

<><><><><>

As Chloé approached Sabrina’s house, she was having seconds thoughts about the whole situation. She, for all intend and purposes, didn’t know what to say or do. for the first time, she didn’t know what to do with someone she knew perfectly, or almost perfectly.

 ** _Just do go._** Victoria said with a form voice, almost commanding.

_I walking, calm down._

**_Calm down yourself._ **

Chloé groaned at the words to later winced when she saw Mr. Raimcorprix standing in front of the house. He was looking at her as if she had killed his daughter for all intendeds and purposes.

“Sabrina!” He yelled to the house. “She has arrived.” He looked back at her again, and Chloé was sure he was analyzing the level of threat she could be to his family.

Chloé walked to the front of the house and simply stood there, not moving.

“Come inside.” The police man said, glaring at her. “But don’t think of doing anything, I’ll be watching you.” he warmed and Chloé simply nodded, reluctantly.

She didn’t want to give him a reason to be so wary of her, and she didn’t want to give her father more work in trying to save her ass from the angry fans of the heroes. Chloé simply walked inside and went straight for the living room and sat on a chair, not looking from her legs. She heard noises from above, so Sabrina must be coming down and Chloé’s anxiety was being soothe by Victoria.

“Hey.” She looked up to meet Sabrina’s eyes as she appeared from the stairs.

Chloé simply waved. “Hi.”

Sabrina sat on the chair in front of her, and the tension on the air was almost palpable and awkward that Chloé felt that she simply needed to get away from this place. But she swallowed the feeling and simply waited there, waiting for Sabrina to begin talking.

“So… as you know,” Sabrina began. “I’ve been around Lila and the others for a while and I got to feel that your company was toxic in some levels—”

 _I knew it._ Chloé’s mind quickly flashed as she simply stared, trying to avoid the obvious look from Mr. Raimcorprix.

“—but it made me realize something in the time I was with them.”

“Which is?” the blonde asked.

Sabrina fixed her glasses as she looked at Chloé with some level of pity, as far as Chloé could recognize in one glance.

“That while I had people explain things to me about myself and how to be better, no one has done the same for you. no one has ever explained to you how to be a good person, so I can exactly blame you for that bit.” The ginger-haired girl said.

Chloé raised her eyebrows and even Sabrina’s father was looking at her surprised.

“So we are going to give this friendship another opportunity, though it will not be like before.” Sabrina told Chloé, who leaned back in the chair to stare at the ceiling.

 _This is… weird._ Chloé told Victoria.

 ** _Why exactly? She is giving you an opportunity, given that you feel that everyone will leave you and you came with the thoughts that she will simply severe your connection with her, you should accept._** Chloé looked at the window and saw Victoria in her reflection staring at her, waving a hand in signal to go on with the conversation.

“Chloé?” Chloé snapped out of her thought at Sabrina calling out to her.

“Yeah?”

“You spaced out, are you _truly_ ok?”

“Maybe yes, maybe not. We might never know.” Chloé deflected the question.

“You’ve been acting weird…” Sabrina pointed out. “But I guess that for another day. So what are your thoughts? So we start over our friendship?”

“Yes…” Chloé mumbled under her breath.

Sabrina clapped her hands with a smile, and Chloé tried to hide the little smile on her face.

_I am thou, thou are I_

_Thou hast established a new bond_

_From thy day onward, The Justice shall be a confidant in thy reign_

“Now, that’s over. I want to ask you about Miracle Queen.” Mr. Raimcorprix said as he walked over as he took aa seat himself. “Can I ask why did you became Miracle Queen?”

Chloé didn’t want to talk about it, but she guesses it would be a sign of good faith if she simply told him and Sabrina the events that lead to her last akumatization.

So she talked about the day from her perspective. She decided to not leave any details hidden from her listeners and she did not ted pain herself as someone who was going to do some good, she simply said what happened and how she felt. Nothing more and nothing less about.

“—that’s where I discovered that the identity stuff only applied to me.” Chloé told them, not looking up to their faces as she didn’t want to see them. “I had a flashback to an unpleasant memory and when Hawkmoth came to me I simply wanted make Ladybug suffer for lying to me so blatantly, though now I feel that she simply needed the dragon for something.”

The silence that followed was obvious and drowned her own thoughts, as far as she could see when she looked up both Raimcorprix were looking at her with thoughtful looks, they shared a glance before the father stood up.

“Then, Ladybug’s words were not entirely truthful to you and you had a mini-breakdown where she accepted Hawkmoth’s offer.” Mr. Raimcorprix summed up.

Chloé nodded. “Yes.” She grabbed her phone and looked at the hour. She had to get something to eat. “I need to go.”

“Wait.” Sabrina’s father calls out.

“What?” Chloé whirled her head around to stare at the man.

“Is there anything happening on the hotel?”

The blonde shook her head and now looked confused. “No, why?”

“Because there are some rumors about something going on in the hotel. Not light rumors.” He said, “But I guess you will tell Sabrina if you find anything about them, right?” He asked.

Chloé swallowed and looked at Sabrina, then at Mr. Raimcorprix, then back at Sabrina. “Ok. Bye.” And she walked to leave the house.

“Bye, Chloé!” Sabrina yelled.

The heiress had a grateful smile on her face. _At least I have a friend now. A true one._

<><><><><>

Ladybug perched in the edge of a rooftop, looking down at the figure of Chloé. she was trying to comprehend what happened to the girl in the span of a few days, she was now wearing different clothes than before and even went walking toward Sabrina’s house. Something was not right—something was different.

She saw the girl walking toward the Eiffel tower as she typed something in her phone before running toward the tower.

She had to ask questions to the Kwamis to see if they could answer her worries.

<><><><><>

Having already ate something from a nearby restaurant, Chloé decided to rest a little bit somewhere nearby the Eiffel tower. The pedestrians stared at her with some disgust and anger in their eyes, but that was something of everyday, Miracle Queen just allowed them to do it more obviously than before.

She looked around and found a teal clothed boy walking with a guitar case in his back. From what she knew he was one of the people outed by her actions.

Chloé walked up to him in an awkward way, as she didn’t know how to even begin talking. She simply saw him walking toward the park, and she followed him while putting her hood on, praying to whoever is up there that no one will be able to recognize her. She followed him for about five minutes as they went inside of the park, a segregated area which Chloé recognized to be a place where people could go to relax, to be alone, to think.

She would know it, since she came to this place the day after Miracle Queen.

“Do you need something?” Chloé heard the boy speaking, his voice was calm and not surprised to see her there. The blonde girl raised an eyebrow but said nothing as she sat agasint a tree as she watched him sitting on the grass.

Chloé made sure to not let her clothes her wrinkles from sitting in the nature, securing no dirt on her clothes was the second priority here.

“I just…” The words were caught in her throat, and Chloé perfectly knew why. She had never said those words like she meant it, all the times it was simply for people to leave her alone and she always went back to do what she wanted. Her fingers touched her neck as she rubbed softly before speaking again.

“Just what?” asked Guitar Boy, strumming a few notes of his guitar that he’d taken out of the case.

“Just wanted to say… sorry for outing you.” Chloé finally said, looking up to not see his face.

“I’m really bad at this, but I simply wanted to say sorry for compromising your identity and all that.”

“You do know that you didn’t out me?” Guitar Boy says with slight amusement. Chloé looked down with a flushing face. “But the apology is much appreciated, I’m Luka Couffaine. Do you come to this place often?”

Chloé looked at him before replying. “Not really, I came to think here after Miracle Queen happened. There weren’t many places I could go without people looking at me with disgust and the likes. You?”

“I discovered this place after my father disappeared. Like you, I had to collect my thoughts and think in the future to help my mother.” Luka said, the strings of the guitar creating a peaceful melody that drowned the rustling branches and leaves of the trees. “The silence here is perfect for relaxing music as well, to when the stress is piling up, I come here.”

“You… are far more mature than you look like.” Chloé noted curiously.

Luka smiled. “So I’ve been told.”

_I am thou, thou are I_

_Thou hast established a new bond_

_From thy day onward, The Hermit shall be a confidant in thy reign_

“Do you know any songs from the low life as you would call it?” Luka asked positioning his guitar agasint his thigh.

“Only the popular ones… and its peasant music in my book.” Chloé said as Luka began to play a song that she all knew too well.

<><><><><>

Margaret found Chloé leaning agasint a tree in a park nearby the Eiffel Tower. She was with a black haired boy with teal colored tips playing with a guitar as Chloé hummed alongside the melody that the boy was playing.

She stood there for a couple of seconds before grabbing her tome. Margaret grabbed the floating, sparkling card in between her fingers before throwing right beside Chloé.

The card struck the trunk of the tree, creating an almost silent sound that could only be heard if you were right beside it. The blonde girl threw her body forward in a single motion, sitting up as she looked around and her eyes finally fell on Margaret’s. The boy seemed stoic at the sudden movement of Chloé, as he continued to play his guitar ass if nothing has happened at all.

“Oh.” Chloé said as she got up from the ground and walked up to Margaret. “What are you doing here so earlier?”

“To talk.” Margaret simply replied, but she looked over to the boy. “But if you want I can come back later.”

“No.” Chloé quickly said, before she looked back at the boy. “See you sometime later, Guitar Boy!”

The boy—Guitar Boy, a nickname, Margaret presumed—look over to them. “Goodbye, Chord.”

Chloé looked surprised at the nickname but said nothing as she walked alongside Margaret, who simply stayed silent. They both walked on the sidewalk toward Chloé’s hotel, to talk in a more private place as Chloé said she didn’t trust the streets, especially on the day as she didn’t know who could be watching her to see her next mess.

It suddenly turned weird, as an explosion was seen in the distance. Margaret’s body jolted in defensive position, to quickly relax the muscles and regain her composure. She looked at Chloé, seeing the girl so unfazed by the explosion couldn’t be more than having seen it multiple times before. A giant baby appeared nearby the place of the explosion, and Margaret wondered who gave him that look to begin with.

“This is… interesting.” Margaret muttered as she located a finger to her chin, looking intently at the giant baby. After a few seconds, two figures appeared on the rooftops. One red and one black, she assumed that they were the people in charge of taking care of this issues.

“Oh, right. This is the first time you see an Akuma attack.” Chloé said in realization as a car was thrown in their direction. Both of them moved out of the way as the car rolled in the pavement agasint a building. “I should have told you about, it must have slipped my mind.”

“Care to give me a rundown?”

“Of course.” Chloé smiled as they went through another path toward the hotel. “There is the villain, Hawkmoth, who uses the negative emotions of the people and uses them to try and get the miraculous of the Ladybug and Black Cat, nobody knows why though. So, everyone has a different akuma, I have seen two people become a single akuma and the likes. It all depends in the situation they are in, as Hawkmoth lures people into agreeing to help him since he says he will help them in return. Due to that, people often have to suppressed the negative emotions to ensure not being used for terrorist acts.”

“But bottling up emotions create stronger akumas, I assume.” Margaret said, her mind racing with thoughts.

“It could be.” Chloé conceded.

“And the world knows about this?”

“No.” The blond replied.

“Why is that?”

Chloé looked at the side, before replying. “Dad says it would hurt the economy of Paris, as it is a tourist destination for many people. It is a great thing to say that a terrorist is loose in the city and he may use you for his plans.”

 _So this is the reason…_ Margaret thought with increasing anger. _This,_ Hawkmoth _, is the reason for Elizabeth’s worries…_ Margaret breath in a deep breath as she calmed herself down, she will vent once she is back in the Velvet Room, or better yet, she will rip apart the next floor for Chloé to stick with the easy ones.

“And it’s done.” Chloé commented with fake enthusiasm while clapping her hands.

Margaret looked up and saw a bunch of ladybugs going around the city, fixing everything that was damaged by the akuma. It looked convenient, you simply could fix everything without much problem.

“And we arrived.”

Chloé walked up to the front doors of the hotel and looked around before signaling Margaret to follow her. Quietly enough, both of them went inside the elevator and upwards toward Chloé’s floor. They arrived and walked inside as the blonde girl grabbed her phone and talked to someone.

Margaret sat on the chair in the balcony as Chloé also sat in front of her and they began to talk about Paris’s situation.

Margaret felt how they grew closer together as the time passes. And as time passed and they talked, she began to like the girl, with her faults and all as the midnight grew closer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And after a long time(for me) I've returned! My parents decided to use the laptop for a week straight due to someone who works in their job tested positive with Corona, but they are now with green light to go back. So it means, updates are going to happen more often now, since in the time I was without the Laptop I had many ideas and now I know who everythng is going to lay out fot this series.
> 
> Also, if you spot any mistakes please let me know. This can be considered no-plot chapter? Not really...


	7. Second Floor and A Velvet Place

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chloé goes inside of the Palace and the Second Floor.
> 
> Later, she gets to enter the Velvet Room.

Margaret uplifts her right arm in a straight position, her hand semi-open as she furrowed her brows in concentration. A velvet mist began to arise from the floor, it floated up around but did nothing beyond simply appearing for a moment. Then, from the spot that the mist appeared, a door began to emerge upwards as chain locks rang throughout the room, a Velvet Door lit up the dark-lit expensive hotel room as Chloé stared at it in clear awe.

The blonde girl took a step forward toward the door that was clearly something she had never seen before. The locks unlocked themselves and fell from their place before disappearing in a velvet flash before Chloé’s eyes.

A hand was placed in Chloé’s shoulder, gentle and firm as the girl whirled around to look at Margaret, who was looking at her with a face of professionalism she had seen from her father before when he had to get serious in certain themes. Margaret looked back at the door, and the door burst open leaving Chloé to see whirling mess of purple color and figures that would give her nausea if she continued staring at it.

“Look the other way.” Margaret instructed and Chloé did as she said. Chloé looked at the door of her own room to regain composure from the slight feeling of nausea that invaded her body as she rested her hands on her knees. It felt magical, and weird, but no less important, it felt inviting, as if the door was calling her out to go inside.

“What is that?” Chloé asked after a few moments of silence. There were no immediate words, but Margaret replied nonetheless.

“That is the Velvet Door, it is used to gain access to my Master’s place.” Margaret carefully explained, summarizing it uses to the simplest one in the book that she could think of. “As of now, I have to do something with him at the moment, so I will leave you alone for a certain time on the Palace to investigate for yourself. Do you understand?”

Chloé looked up to Margaret’s face, before giving a nod filled with determination. Something gleamed in the eyes of the girl for what Margaret could see, but she was not going to give attention to it for now.

“Then, prepare yourself.” Margaret informed before pointing at the clock on Chloé’s make-up desk. “Time is arriving. Don’t do anything reckless.” The assistant said as she walked up to the Velvet Door.

She went through it, disappearing inside of the visual mess, as the mist began to disperse. The door closed with rapid fury, the sound of chains and locks began to filter through Chloé’s mind. Locks appeared and closed the door in a more secure way before going inside of the floor, and there was nothing left to say that she was with someone in her room.

 _That was… very much weird._ Chloé thought to herself, and she could feel the humming of agreement from Victoria as she whirled around on her feet to look at the clock. Ten seconds left.

Taking a deep breath, Chloé prepared herself for the shift in the atmosphere. It arrived, she felt to stumbled but managed to quickly recomposed herself and stand straight. The blonde whirled on her feet once again and walked to the balcony before glancing at her clothes to confirm that she was in fact inside of the Palace. She was, and so she jumped to the ground.

Chloé landed on her feet and looked back at the hotel, the drones looking for something that she will make sure wasn’t her. Glancing at the alleyway in the left, she ran as silent as possible as she quickly reached her destination.

She saw the window and jumped, grabbing the edge before lifting herself through it and inside of the Palace, from the first floor, once again.

<><><><><>

Something that Chloé found right away was the lack of shadows in the First Floor. It was eerily quiet and she wasn’t quite sure if that meant something good or bad, but Chloé would be with her guard up every time she out in the open for a surprise attack.

Chloé ran toward the elevator before looking back a last time, after confirming that there were no shadows coming for her she walked inside of the metal box as she door closed behind her.

She pressed the second floor button.

Gears moved and ringed, and the elevator moved slightly as Chloé began to feel it moving upwards and after what it seemed an eternity, another slight movement from the elevator told her she had arrived at her destination.

The doors opened slowly, and Chloé was shocked by what she saw. The room was covered in gears and clocks. The floor was made out of brown wood planks and the walls were light-brown colored. The walls were littered with gears from all sizes, some as big as her whole body while other were as small as her hands, each one of them in a different position. Some engrained in the wall while others were in a special mechanism.

A bell rang throughout the floor, as Chloé saw the pendulum moving from left to right. It looked like she was inside of a grandfather’s clock. Wind blew and Chloé shivered slightly at the sudden breeze, looking around she found a mini-balcony made out of rusty metal on the right side and she walked to it. she saw the outside of the Palace, meaning she was still inside of it, but Chloé’s face contorted into confusion as she stared in question at the very different style of the floor.

 ** _Don’t think about it too much,_** Victoria’s voice rang deep in her mind, as if advising her. **_You might go crazy if you do._**

Chloé decided to heed those words as she walked backwards away from the balcony and prepared herself to look around.

“Who are you!?” A voice demanded.

Chloé’s heart began pumping blood though the body as she looked at the knight in rustier design appearing from the hallway on the left side of the main room, as Chloé will begin to call it.

The knight wore the same armor that the other from the First Floor did, but this time the helmet was replaced with a simple mask that looked like a torture device of some kind. Metal spikes were impaling the mouth and the holes of the eyes seemed to be leaking the kind of oozing black liquid that appears when she killed the other night—their blood, Chloé assume, or something similar.

Steeling herself for the battle, Chloé called forth her gun and press it agasint her temple before pulling the trigger. A bang was heard and Victoria emerged from a pillar of flames.

“Execution!” Chloé roared as Victoria rushed forward and swung her ax. The blade of the axe landed on the armor, denting it a little bit and making the knight waver if only something.

It was enough though, as the armor looked up and rushed to Chloé while swinging a shorter version of a medieval sword. Chloé tried to side-step, but wasn’t fast enough as the hit struck her torso and Chloé felt pain cursing through her right side toward the brain. She swallowed her scream of pain as she recovered before shooting herself again, Victoria once again brought to material existence.

“Begone.” Chloé mumbled under her breath as Victoria swung her ax once again, this time, the knight managed to avoid it, but Chloé used that opportunity to swing her blade toward the neck of the knight. It struck, and in one swift move, she beheaded the shadow.

Chloé watched the body limp down before sagging toward the ground. A torrent of black liquid shot from the neck as the head rolled down to the floor as the body began to disappear, some money left in the wake of the knight.

“ **Are you ok?** ” Victoria spoke looking at Chloé, and the blonde felt how the concerned was written all over the posture of her Persona. It could very well be because she technically is Victoria—one in the same—but it could very well also be that Victoria is also technically her _own_ person.

“Yes?” Chloé didn’t know, she went and located a hand in the place where she was struck and winced before looking at it. it seemed that no damage befell the costume, but the pain was real and it was there without a doubt. She would’ve to get that in mind, fighting with pain will not be a pleasant experience.

“ **Just be wary of your surroundings**.” Victoria said as she disappeared in flames.

Chloé nodded, perfectly knowing that Victoria felt her nod and walked to the hallway in front of her. A row of doors was the first thing she saw, each one of them with a metal plate in the front, black numbers from what she could see, but she had no idea what they could mean. They were dates, Chloé realized in surprised, but not dates she could recognize.

 _Wait…_ Chloé backtracked and walked back to see one of the plates. It was the date she was born. The door was made of a dark wood and looked grimly if you saw it in detail, but Chloé wasn’t thinking about that in the moment. She was thinking why a door has the date she was born in, curiosity got the best of her.

Her hand grabbed the door knob and she went inside. The inside of the room was normal, _too_ normal if she was to say. Chloé looked at the room with a tilted head with a face full of confusion.

The room was in a dark shade of brown with golden lassos around the walls as flowers, in the middle there were rubies but they didn’t look right, they looked fake. In the middle of the room, there was a chair with a bear doll sitting on top of it, a small decorative pillow in its back as the face was looking at Chloé, mini diamonds as eyes as it gazed deep into her soul.

“Mr. Cuddles?” Chloé asked in recognition to no one in particular, one could perfectly hear the lingering happiness of seeing the bear, but her body’s hesitation was growing by the second. The blonde-girl tried hard to not grab the bear, knowing perfectly that this could be a trap, but she wanted reassurance that she won’t do very bad until Margaret arrives.

The bear won in the end.

Chloé walked to the chair and grabbed the bear before looking at it intently. It had been so long since she had even seen Mr. Cuddles, Chloé decided to simply talk to him as a method of venting to get her mind straight when she goes back. Unfortunaly for her, an alarm blast and she drops the bear as she blocks her ears from the sound. After a few seconds, sound came from behind and before Chloé could look back something grabbed her neck.

Cold metal pressed agasint her skin as she tried to pry off whatever had grabbed her. Suddenly, she was thrown out of the room and into the wall with clocks with sheer strength. Pain traveled through her body as she arched trying to catch her breath.

Chloé saw movement and tilted her head to the side quickly enough as a blade pierced where her head once was. The Persona-User widened her eyes as pry herself out of the wall and quickly ran away, she had to retreat and know what she was fighting. When she reached the center of the floor, where the elevator was, she found her heart halting for a second.

The elevator was closed.

She couldn’t get out of the floor.

Chloé whirled around and saw a big knight, very big walking toward her. A giant sword that was her size in width on his left hand. The helmet around his head was in the shape of a skull, eyes sockets shinning a deepening red light that pierced Chloé’s very soul in a way that Mr. Cuddle didn’t.

“How couldn’t I hear _that_?” Chloé asked no one in particular.

 ** _Have you ever thought that the bear could’ve been a trap?_** Victoria asked.

Chloé didn’t answer as she prepared herself, but Victoria knew the answer very well. A trap inside of the plush bear that Chloé always favored, to make her guard go down. The blonde looked up and down, knowing that this fight she was not going to win if she was not careful.

**_Do it._ **

Summoning the gun, Chloé cried out. “Judgement!”

Chains appeared at the same time as Victoria, wrapping themselves around the knight. It looked down at the clock that was formed in the floor, the hands began to spin and it landed on the number two, Victoria disappeared quickly into the floor. Two minutes Chloé had to survive the encounter, and she prayed that this was the only other shadow on this floor. _Though it was curious_ , Chloé realized, _why was so little guards on this place?_

Her thoughts were interrupted when sound of metal clashing reached her ears. The knight began to move, it swung the sword in her direction and Chloé jumped in the air out of reflex to later form a fireball in its hand and threw toward Chloé. the girl crossed her arms over her face as she felt the fire burning her, though not the clothes.

She gritted her teeth and landed on the floor to rush forward. Unsheathing her sword, Chloé swung it toward the neck only to be blocked by the shoulder of the knight. The recoil paralyzed Chloé long enough for the knight to swing his sword, which Chloé ducked out of the way before swing her sword once again.

This time, however, the attacked was parried and Chloé’s torso met the sword of the knight sending her to a nearby wall. Chloé gasped in pain as sweat fell from her brows, she fell to the ground and coughed as her chest heaved deeply. _This knight is stronger that the rest_ , Chloé finally thought as her mind was clear enough to do so, _why was this knight triggered by Mr. Cuddles!?_

The knight walked slowly toward Chloé, readying his sword to swing it down on her. Victoria appeared from the floor as the guillotine began to emerge, it would not be fast enough for the chains to react. Chloé tried to move but pain shot through her torso and made her stumble in her feet.

She looked up to see the knight with the sword already on top of her before—

“Bufala!” A voice yelled.

Chloé looked down and saw sparkles of white appear beneath the knight. Ice began to sprout from the floor and quickly advance upwards as it began to branch in sharp ends. So many of the ends ended up cutting through the armor before exploding without harming Chloé as the girl breathed a sigh of relief, she was to live more.

“Diarama!” The same voice yelled, Margaret’s voice.

A green light appeared and surrounded Chloé, pain began to cease and the girl could stand up once more. She looked at Margaret, then at the elevator—which was still close, Chloé would have to ask with Margaret reached her using the Velvet Door.

The knight fell backwards and Chloé watched as the chains started glowing velvet. It was time. The chains began to drag the knight toward the guillotine as Chloé sighed and walked to the execution device. Victoria looked at her, and Chloé could feel her concern but decided to not think about it too much. The head of the knight was beneath the blade, and Chloé pulled the lever down. Beheading the knight.

“Are you ok?” Margaret asked as she looked around.

“Yes.” Chloé replied, wincing at the phantom pain of the blade of the knight. “How did you get here?”

Margaret waved her hand toward the corner beside the elevator, and Chloé watched the Velvet Door open there.

“My master wishes to meet you.” Margaret informed as she walked toward the Door. Chloé quickly moved and walked behind her, confused at Margaret’s words.

“Why?”

“Because he sees you as… an intriguing person.”

The elevator made a bell sound and Margaret rushed Chloé to the door, practically throwing the girl inside of it. the nausea began to set in, and Chloé looked up to where she entered the Door. From the corner of her eyes before she went to sleep Chloé saw her mother stepping out of the elevator.

<><><><><>

Lila Rossi looked around the street, trying to find out if there was someone watching her. She walked to the door before stopping in front of it, someone cleared their throat and Lila fell into innocent eyes just in case.

“Who are you?” The door guy asked.

“I am one of Chloé’s friends.” Lila states, tilting her head innocently. “She asked me to come here at this hour. May I go inside?”

The door-guy simply watched from head to foot, narrowing his eyes in a way Lila felt that he was inspecting her with his eyes and nothing else. She stood, not breaking the innocent façade just in case.

“Mademoiselle Bourgeois doesn’t have that many friends, and I have not seen you go inside of the hotel with her.” The door-guy said, raising an eyebrow in suspicion.

“Look.” Lila replied, she had her ways—In the name of Max.

She grabbed her phone in her pocket and searched for a message. She showed it to the door guy, who analyzed the contents of the message before he nodded to himself.

“Very well, you may enter.” The man nodded and opened the door for her and she walked inside, the lights gleamed in her eyes and Lila squeezed them before blinking rapidly.

The Italian girl walked to the elevator, looking around to confirm that there was no one to doubt her presence there. She went inside and pressed the button to Chloé’s room, smiling to herself for having the foresight to ask Sabrina about the exact location. It was easy to swoop in and make the girl go on her side, she was desperate for having someone to actually call friend in the time Chloé wasn’t with anyone.

A chill ran down Lila’s spine as she thought back to the hallucination she had—she considers it and hallucination, but she knows it was not—and wondered what was that. If Hawkmoth asked her personally to investigate the girl and report anything that she does, does it mean that he is curious about her? Why? What could have possibly one of Paris most hated people be doing that could be interesting enough? Unless is it was to use her as a pawn, which Lila would very much agree with.

But she doesn’t know if it would lead to her being killed, and she didn’t want to risk her life for someone who she just so happens to share goals with.

The doors opened and she walked out toward Chloé’s suite. She stood before the door, grabbed the door knob and twist it a little bit until she heard the click. Lila opened the door slightly, looking to see if the girl was asleep. She found that no one was in the room, which confused her, since the door-guy wouldn’t have let her enter if Chloé was not inside.

 _Either way…_ Lila thought. _Let’s use this to my advantage._

She went inside to try and find leverage to use agasint the girl, in case she tries something agasint Lila.

<><><><><>

“Welcome to the Velvet Room.”

A deep voice reached her ears, stirring her awake as her eyelids fluttered open. The first thing Chloé saw was the garden of velvet flowers surrounding the small table in front of her. The second thing, an old-man with a long nose sitting in a wooden desk looking at her with curiosity.

“My name is Igor, pleasure to make your acquaintance.” He said smiling.

“Chloé Bourgeois.” Chloé said as soon as the man introduced himself. She found his presence a mystery, but she guessed that she was going to get her answer either way so there was no point in being suspicions about someone who Margaret speaks highly of. “So, you are Margaret’s master?”

“That is correct.” Igor confirms. He waved around the place they are. “I am the caretaker of this place, The Velvet Room. A place between reality and dream, as of right now, you care currently asleep, or in a similar state to allow you to be here without consequences.”

“Consequences?” Chloé mumbled, confused.

Igor just chuckled at her question. “The human body was not design to withstand being within a space between the reality they know and the dreamscape. There has been exception, yes, but they were truly particular exceptions.”

Chloé nodded, still confused but said not much. If she was to understand this, she would have to get as much information as possible. _Lay low until you can strike with certainty._ Her mother’s words rang in her mind. She looked around, taking in the garden around her as the gentle breeze blew around her. It felt peaceful, and it felt weird being peaceful since the last couple of days.

“Wait,” The blonde realized something. “If this is called The Velvet _Room_ , then why is it a garden? Where is my body then?”

“Because of you,” Igor informed. Chloé tilted her head to the side, and he continued. “The Velvet Room takes the shape of the heart of whoever is visiting. In your case, it took the shape of a garden. The reason, however, is lost to me. Margaret is guarding your body somewhere in the Velvet Zone.”

“An anomaly…” Chloé uttered under her breath. “What do you mean?”

“Only people with the Wild Card are allowed to enter the Velvet Room,” Igor began. “You, however, do not possess that ability that makes them especial.”

Chloé looked down as she bits her lip. So even though she got this power, she was not especial. From the sound of Igor’s voice, there were many people who that special ability and she was not one of them. Was she simply destined to not be exceptional in anything?

“But,” Igor quickly added, apparently noticing Chloé’s reaction to those words. The girl looked up. “The fact that you are able to use a person, the fact that yours is self-aware of what it is and the fact that you’ve made bonds, albeit not the ones I’ve come to understand, is a feat in-on-itself. You are an anomaly, someone truly interesting to see. I look forward to know what your choices will lead to.”

Chloé said nothing, simply absorbing the words of the old-man. Bringing a hand up to her forehead, she reclined on the chair as she looked up.

“Besides, I need to ask your help with something.” Igor said.

“What is it?” Chloé asked.

She was told, and she accepted.

<><><><><>

Lila sighed in frustration as she closed the last drawer in the room. She found nothing that would give her an advantage over Chloé, in fact, everything that was in here she has already heard it or everyone else knew about it. she decided to retreat, there was no point in chasing something that she couldn’t achieve. She would have to investigate Chloé tomorrow where she will have a better understanding of the girl’s weird recent behavior.

She walked to the door, before a voice stopped her in her dead tracks.

“What are you doing here?”

Lila turned around to meet face to face with Chloé Bourgeois.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If there is any gramatical error, please let me know.


End file.
